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i-    j* 


ELM:   ISLAND    STORIES. 


T II E 


YOUXG   SHIP-BUILDEHS 


ISLA.ND. 


BY 


HEV.  ELIJAH  KELLOGG, 

ilMll  or  ''I. ION   HEN  OF  ELM   ISLAND,"  "  CKAKLIK  HELL  OF  ELM  ISLAND,' 
'•'J!IE  AEK  OF  ELM   ISLAND,"    "THE    HOY   FARMERS  OF  ELM 
ISLAND,"    "THE    1IABI)   HCHAUIILE  OF 
ELM  ISLAND,"   KTC. 


BOSTON : 

LEE    AND    SHEPARD,    PUBLISHERS. 
NEW  YORK: 

LEE,  SHEPARD  &  DILLINGIIAM,  4'J  UKEEXK  STREET. 

1871. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  ihc  year  1S70,  by 

LEE    AND    SITEPAHD, 
In  tr>°f'io.rk-s  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


ELECTflOTYPET)    AT    THE 

BOSTON     STEREOTYPE     FOUNDRY, 

19  Spring  Lane. 


PREFACE. 


THE  natural  progress  of  this  series  has  brought 
us  to  a  period  in  the  history  of  our  young  friends, 
when,  instead  of  labors  in  a  measure  voluntary, 
pursued  at  home,  amid  home  comforts,  they  toil 
lor  exacting  masters  or  the  public,  enter  into 
competition  with  others,  feel  the  pressure  of  re 
sponsibility,  learn  submission,  and  are  tied  down 
to  rigid  rules  and  severe  tasks.  The  manner  in 
which  they  meet  and  sustain  these  new  and 
trying  relations  shows  the  stuff  they  are  made 
of;  that  the  fear  of  God  in  a  young  heart  is  a 
shield  in  the  hour' of  temptation,  the  foundation 
of  true  courage,  and  the  strongest  incentive  to 
manly  effort ;  that  he  who  does  the  best  for  his 
employer  does  the  best  for  himself;  (hat  the 


4  PREFACE. 

boy  in  whose  character  are  the  germs  of  ster 
ling  worth,  and  a  true  manhood,  will  scorn  to 
lead  a  useless  life,  eat  the  bread  he  has  not 
earned,  and  live  upon  the  bounty  of  parents 
and  friends. 


ELM  ISLAND  STORIES. 


1.  LION    BEN    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

2.  CHARLIE    BELL,  THE    WAIF   OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

3.  THE    ARK    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

4.  THE    BOY    FARMERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

5.  THE  YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS   OF    ELM    ISLAND. 
G.   THE    HARD-SCRABBLE   OF   ELM    ISLAND. 


CONTENTS. 


CHATTER  PAGB 

I.  LEARNING  A  TRADE 9 

II.  GUNNING  ON  THE  OUTER  REEFS 21 

III.  INTERNAL  IMPROVEMENTS 37 

IV.  THE  WEST  WIND 53 

V.     HAPS  AND  MISHAPS 71 

VI.     PARSON    GOODIIUE    AND  THE  WILD  GANDER.  89 

Vir.     CHARLIE  GETS  NEW  IDEAS  WHILE  IN  BOSTON.  107 

VIII.     Xo  GIVE  UP  TO  CHARLIE 120 

IX.     CHARLIE  LEARNING  A  NEW  LANGUAGE.      .     .  133 

X.     WHERE  THERE'S  A  WILL  THERE'S  A  WAY.     .  140 

XI.     POMP'S  POND 152 

XII.     CHARLIE     UNCONSCIOUSLY     PREFIGURES    THE 

FUTURE 1GO 

XIII.  BETTER  LET  SLEEPING  DOGS  ALONE.     .     .     .  180 

XIV.  VICTORY  AT  LAST l!)ii 

XV.     THE  SURPRISER  SURPRISED 207 

(7) 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XVI.     WHY  CHARLIE   DIDN'T  WANT  TO  SELL  THE 

WINGS  OF  THE  MORNING 222 

XVII.     CHARLIE  FXPLORING  THE  COAST 236 

XVIII.     CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.    .     .     .  256 

XIX.     CHARLIE  IN  THE  SHIP-YARD 272 

XX.     THE     FIRST     TROUBLE     AND    THE    FIRST 

PRAYER ,  289 


THE  YOUNG  SHIP-BUILDERS 

OF 

ELM    ISLAND. 


CHAPTER    I. 

LEARNING   A   TRADE. 

THE  question,  What  shall  I  do  in  life  ?  is,  to  an 
industrious,  ambitious  boy,  desirous  to  make  the 
most  of  himself,  quite  a  trying  one. 

Thoughts  of  that  nature  were  busy  at  the  heart 
of  John  Rhines ;  he  now  had  leisure  to  indulge 
them,  as,  upon  his  return  from  Elm  Island,  he 
found  that  the  harvesting  was  all  secured,  and 
the  winter  school  not  yet  commenced.  The 
whole  summer  had  been  one  continued  scene  of 
hard  work  and  pleasurable  excitement.  Missing 
his  companions,  being  somewhat  lonesome  and  at 
a  loss  what  to  do  with  himself,  he  would  take  his 
gun,  wander  off  in  the  woods,  and  sitting  down 

(9) 


10       TUB    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

on  a  log,  turn  the  matter  over  in  his  mind.  At 
one  time  he  thought  of  going  into  the  forest  and 
cutting  out  a  farm,  as  Ben  had  done ;  he  had  often 
talked  the  matter  over  with  Charlie,  who  cher 
ished  similar  ideas.  Sometimes  he  thought  of 
learning  a  trade,  but  could  not  settle  upon  one 
that  suited  him,  for  which,  he  conceived,  he  had 
a  capacity.  Again,  he  thought  of  being  a  sailor; 
but  he  knew  that  both  father  and  mother  would 
be  utterly  opposed  to  it.  While  thus  debating 
with  himself,  that  Providence,  which  we  believe 
has  much  to  do  with  human  occupations,  deter 
mined  the  whole  matter  in  the  easiest  and  most 
natural  manner  imaginable.  John  Rhines,  though 
a  noble  boy  to  work,  had  never  manifested  any 
mechanical  ability  or  inclination  whatever.  If 
he  wanted  anything  made,  he  would  go  over  to 
Uncle  Isaac  and  do  some  farming  work  for  him, 
while  he  made  it  for  him. 

It  so  happened,  while  he  was  thus  at  leisure, 
that  his  father  sent  him  down  to  the  shop  of  Peter 
Brock  with  a  crowbar,  to  have  it  forged  over. 
(The  readers  of  the  previous  volume  well  know 
that  Ben,  when  at  home,  had  tools  made  on  pur 
pose  for  him,  which  nobody  else  could  handle.) 
This  was  Ben's  bar.  Captain  Rhines  had  deter- 


LEARNING    A   TRADE.  11 

mined  to  make  two  of  it,  and  sent  it  to  the  shop 
with  orders  to  cut  it  in  two  parts,  draw  them 
down,  and  steel-point  them.  John,  having  flung 
down  the  l)ar  and  delivered  the  message,  was 
going  home  again,  when  Peter  said, — 

"  Won't  you  strike  for  me  to  draw  this  down  ? 
It's  a  big  piece  of  iron.  My  apprentice,  Sam 
Rounds,  has  gone  home  sick;  besides,  when  I 
weld  the  steel  on,  I  must  have  somebody  to  take 
it  out  of  the  fire  and  hold  it  for  me,  while  1 
weld  it." 

"I  had  rather  do  it  than  not,  Peter.  I  want 
something  to  do,  for  I  feel  kind  of  lonesome." 

Stripping  off  his  jacket,  he  caught  up  the  big 
sledge,  and  soon  rendered  his  friend  efficient  aid. 

"There's  not  another  boy  in  town  could  swing 
that  sledge,"  said  Peter.  "Do  you  ever  expect  to 
be  as  stout  as  Ben  ?  " 

"I  don't  know;  I  should  like  to  be." 

"Are  you  done  on  the  island?" 

"Yes." 

"  They  say  you  three  boys  did  a  great  summer'* 
work." 

"  We  did  the  best  we  could." 

"I  know  that  most  of  the  people  thought  it 
wasn't  a  very  good  calculation  in  your  brother 


12      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP   ELM   ISLAND. 

Ben  to  go  off  and  leave  three  boys  to  plan  for 
themselves,  and  that  there  wouldn't  be  much 
done  —  at  any  rate  that's  the  way  I  heard  them 
talk  while  they  were  having  their  horses  shod." 

"That  was  just  what  made  us  work.  If  a 
man  hires  me,  and  then  goes  hiding  behind  the 
fences,  and  smelling  round,  to  see  whether  I  am 
at  work  or  not,  I  don't  think  much  of  him;  but  if 
he  trusts  me,  puts  confidence  in  me,  won't  I  work 
for  that  man !  Yes,  harder  than  I  would  for  my 
self.  But  what  did  they  say  when  they  came 
home  from  husking  ?  " 

"  O,  the  boot  was  on  the  other  leg  then ;  there 
never  wras  such  crops  of  corn  and  potatoes  raised 
in  this  town  before  on  the  same  ground.  Has 
your  father  got  his  harvest  in  ? " 

"Yes."  • 

"Well,  I've  got  a  lot  of  axes  to  make  for  the 
logging  swamp;  my  apprentice  has  got  a  fever;  I 
must  have  some  one  to  strike;  I  tried  for  Joe 
Griffin,  but  he's  going  into  the  woods,  and  Henry 
too ;  why  can't  you  help  me  ?  " 

"I  don't  know  how." 

"  All  I  want  of  you  is  to  blow  and  strike ;  you 
will  soon"  learn  to  strike  fair;  you  are  certainly 
strong  enough." 


LEARNING    A    TRADE.  13 

"  Reckon  I  am.  I  can  lift  your  load,  and  you  on 
top  of  it." 

"  Well,  then,  why  can't  you  help  me  ?  I'm  sure 
I  don't  know  what  I  shall  do." 

"If  father  is  willing,  I'll  help  you  till  school 
begins." 

The  result  was,  that  John,  in  a  short  time, 
evinced,  not  only  a  great  fondness,  but  also  a  re 
markable  capacity  for  the  work,  made  flounder  and 
eel-spears,  clam-forks,  and  mended  all  his  father's 
broken  hay-forks  and  other  tools. 

John  worked  with  Peter  till  school  began.  The 
day  before  going  to  school,  he  went  to  see  Charlie, 
as  passing  to  and  from  the  island  in  winter  was  so 
difficult  they  seldom  met. 

To  the  great  surprise  of  Charlie,  Ben,  and  Sally, 
who  never  knew  John  to  be  guilty  of  making  any 
thing,  he  presented  Charlie  with  two  iron  anchors 
for  the  Sea-foam,  with  iron  stocks  and  rings  com 
plete,  and  Ben  with  an  eel-spear  and  clam-fork, 
very  neatly  made. 

"  What  neat  little  things  they  are  ! "  said  Char 
lie,  looking  at  the  anchors.  "  Where  did  you  get 
them?" 

"Made  them,"  replied  John,  "  at  Peter's  shop." 

"  Why,  John,"  said  Ben,  "  you've  broken  out  in 
a  bran-new  place  ! " 


14      THE    YOUKG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

John  then  told  him  that  he  had  been  at  work 
in  the  blacksmith's  shop,  how  well  he  liked  it,  and 
that,  after  school  was  out,  he  meant  to  ask  his 
father  to  let  him  learn  the  trade. 

"John,"  said  Ben,  "Uncle  Isaac,  Joe  Griffin,  and 
myself  have  been  talking  this  two  years  about  go 
ing  outside  gunning.  If  I  go,  I  want  to  go  before 
the  menhaden  are  all  gone;  for  we  shall  want  bait, 
in  order  that  we  may  fish  as  well  as  gun.  It  is 
late  now,  and  the  first  north-easter  will  drive  the 
menhaden  all  out  of  the  bay." 

"  I  heard  him  and  Joe  talking  about  it  the  other 
day;  they  said  they  calculated  to  go." 

"  Well,  tell  them  I'm  ready  at  any  time,  and  to 
come  on,  whenever  they  think  it  is  suitable." 

John  and  Charlie  went  to  the  shore  to  sail  the 
Sea-foam,  —  a  boat,  three  feet  long,  rigged  into  a 
schooner,  —  and  try  the  new  anchors.  While  they 
were  looking  at  her,  Charlie  fell  into  a  reverie.  t 

"Didn't  she  go  across  quick,  that  time,  Char 
lie?" 

No  reply. 

"  Charlie,  didn't  she  steer  herself  well  then  ?  " 

Still  no  answer. 

"  What  are  you  thinking  about,  Charlie  ?  " 

"You  see  what  a  good  wind  she  holds,  John?" 

"Yes." 


LEARNING    A    TRADE.  15 

"And  how  well  she  works,  just  like  any  ves 
sel?" 

"  Well,  then,  what  is  the  reason  we  couldn't 
dig  out  a  bout  big  enough  to  sail  in,  and  model 
her  just  like  that?  These  canoes  are  not  much 
better  than  hog's  troughs." 

o  o 

"  It  would  take  an  everlasting  great  log  to  have 
any  room  inside,  except  right  in  the  middle." 

"  We  could  dig  her  out  very  thin,  and  make  her 
long  enough  to  make  up  for  the  sharp  ends." 

"It  would  be  a  great  idea.  I  should  like  dearly 
to  try  it." 

The  boys  now  went  to  bed  and  talked  boat  till 
they  worked  themselves  into  a  complete  fever,  and 
were  fully  determined  to  realize  this  novel  idea; 
for,  as  is  generally  the  case  in  such  matters,  the 
more  they  deliberated  upon  and  took  counsel  about 
it,  the  more  feasible  it  seemed ;  then  they  consid 
ered  and  magnified  the  astonishment  of  Fred  and 
Captain  Ilhines  when  they  should  sail  over  in  their 
new  craft,  and  finally  settled  down  into  the  belief 
that,  if  they  realized  their  idea,  it  would  not  fall 
one  whit  short  of  the  conception  and  construction 
of  the  Ark  herself. 

But  the  main  difficulty  —  and  it  was  one  that 
seemed  to  threaten  lailure  to  the  whole  matter  — 


16       T,IE    YOCXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

was,  where  to  obtain  a  log,  as  one  of  sufficient  size 
for  that  purpose  would  make  a  mast  for  a  ship  of 
the  line,  and  was  too  valuable,  even  in  those  days, 
to  cut  for  a  plaything,  as  it  was  by  no  means  cer 
tain  that  she  would  ever  be  anything  more :  there 
were  indeed  trees  enough,  with  short  butts,  large 
enough  for  their  purpose,  had  they  wanted  to  make 
a  common  float,  or  a  canoe,  with  round  ends,  like 
a  comnvon  tray ;  but,  as  they  were  to  sharpen  up 
the  ends  vessel  fashion,  give  her  quite  a  sharp 
floor,  and  take  so  much  from  the  outside  in  order 
to  shape  her,  it  was  necessary  that  the  tree  should 
be  long,  as  well  as  large,  to  be  recompensed  by 
length  for  the  room  thus  taken  from  the  inside, 
and  leave  sufficient  thickness  of  wood  to  hold 
together. 

While  Charlie  was  debating  in  his  own  mind 
whether  to  ask  his  father  to  permit  him  to 
cut  such  a  tree,  John,  with  a  flash  of  recollection 
that  sent  the  words  from  his  lips  with  the  velocity 
of  a  shell  from  a  mortar,  exclaimed,  jumping  up 
on  end  in  bed, — 

'•  I  have  it  now !  there's  a  log  been  lying  all 
summer  in  our  cove,  that  came  there  in  the  last 
freshet,  with  no  mark  on  it,  more  than  thirty  feet 
long,  and  I  know  it's  rnore'n  five  feet  through :  it's 


LEARNING    A    TRADE.  17 

a  bouncer,  I  tell  you;  but  it's  hollow  at  the  butt, 
and  I  suppose  that's  what  they  condemned  it  for; 
but  I  don't  believe  the  hollow  runs  in  far.  It's 
mine,  for  I  picked  it  up  and  fastened  it." 

"But  you  are  going  to  school.  You  can't  help 
me  make  it;  and  we  should  have  such  a  good 
time.  It  is  too  bad  !  " 

"  Well,  I  can  do  this  much  towards  it.  I  don't 
care  a  great  deal  about  going  to  school  the  first 
day ;  they  won't  do  much.  I'll  help  you  tow  it 
over,  and  haul  it  up;  and  if  you  don't  get  it  done 
before,  when  school  is  clone,  I'll  come  on,  help  you 
make  sugar,  and  finish  the  boat." 

"Then  I  won't  do  any  more  than  to  dig  some 
of  it  out.  I  won't  make  the  outside  till  you 
come." 

In  the  morning  they  went  over  to  look  at  it,  and 
found  the  hollow  only  extended  about  four  feet. 
It  was  afloat  and  fastened  with  a  rope,  just  as 
John  had  secured  it  in  the  spring.  They  towed 
it  home  without  attracting  notice,  as  they  consid 
ered  it  very  important  to  keep  the  matter  secret 
till  the  craft  was  completed. 

"Then,"  said  Charlie,   "if  we   phould   spoil  the 
log,  and  don't  make  a  boat,  there  will  be  nobody 
to  laugh  at  us." 
2 


18       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Putting  down  skids,  they  hauled  it  up  on  to 
the  grass  ground  with  the  oxen,  and,  with  a  cross 
cut  saw,  made  it  the  right  length.  As  all  above 

'  O  O 

the  middle  of  the  log  had  to  be  cut  away,  and  was 
of  no  use  to  them,  it  was  evident,  that  if  they 
could  split  it  in  halves,  the  other  half  would  make 
a  canoe,  clapboards,  or  shingles. 

"This  is  a  beautiful  log,"  said  Charlie.  "It  is 
too  bad  to  cut  half  of  it  into  chips.  It  is  straight- 
grained  and  clear  of  knots;  we  will  split  it." 

"Split  it!"  said  John;  "'twould  take  a  week!" 

"  No,  it  won't.     We  can  split  it  with  powder." 

"  I  never  thought  of  that." 

They  bored  holes  in  the  log  at  intervals  of  three 
feet,  filled  them  part  full  of  powder,  and  drove  in 
a  plug  with  a  score  cut  in  the  side  of  it.  Into  this 
they  poured  powder,  to  communicate  with  that  in 
the  hole.  They  then  laid  a  train,  and  touched 
them  all  at  once,  when  the  log  flew  apart  in  an 
instant,  splitting  as  straight  as  the  two  halves  of 
an  acorn. 

"I'll  take  the  half  you  don't  want,  boys,"  said 
Ben,  who,  unnoticed,  had  watched  their  proceed 
ings;  "it  will  make  splendid  clapboards." 

During  the  winter,  on  half  holidays,  and  at 
every  leisure  moment,  John  Rhiues  was  to  be 


LEARNING    A    TRADE.  19 

found  at  the  blacksmith's  shop.  At  length  he 
could  contain  himself  no  longer,  but  went  to  his 
father  and  asked  permission  to  learn  the  black 
smith's  trade  of  Peter.  John  anticipated  a  hard 
struggle  in  obtaining  his  father's  consent,  if  in 
deed  he  obtained  it  at  all,  as  there  was  a  large  farm 
to  take  care  of,  plenty  to  do  at  home,  and  enough 
to  do  with.  But  Captain  Rhincs,  who  had  always 
said,  if  a  boy  would  only  work  steadily,  his  own 
inclinations  should  be  consulted  in  choice  of  occu 
pation,  was  so  rejoiced  to  find  he  didn't  want  to 
go  to  sea,  of  which  he  had  always  been  apprehen 
sive,  that  he  yielded  the  point  at  once. 

"It  is  a  good  trade,  John,"  said  he,  "and  always 
will  be ;  but  I  wouldn't  think  of  learning  a  trade 
of  Peter." 

"Why  not,  father?" 

"  Because  he's  no  workman ;  he's  just  a  botcher." 

"Whoshnllllearn  of?" 

"  I'll  tell  you,  my  son ;  go  to  Portland  and  learn 
to  do  ship- work ;  there's  money  in  that;  ship 
building  is  going  to  be  the  great  business  along 
shore  for  many  a  year  to  come.  You'll  make  more 
money  forging  fishermen's  anchors,  or  doing  the 
iron-work  of  a  vessel,  in  one  season,  than  you 
would  mending  carts,  shoeing  old  horses  and  oxen, 


20      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEBS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

making  axes,  pitchforks,  and  chains  in  three  years. 
My  old  friend,  Captain  Starrett,  has  a  brother  who 
is  a  capital  workman,  a  finished  mechanic,  learned 
his  trade  in  the  old  country  —  and  his  wife  is  a 
first-rate  woman;  she  went  from  this  town.  I'll 
get  you  a  chance  there." 

Captain  Rhines  went  to  Portland  in  the  course 
of  the  winter,  and  secured  an  opportunity  for  John 
to  begin  to  work  the  first  of  May. 


GUNNING   ON    THE    OUTER   REEFS.  21 


CHAPTER  II. 

GUNNING  ON  THE  OUTER  EEEFS. 

BEN  thought  it  was  now  a  favorable  time  to  do 
something  to  the  house,  and  made  up  his  mind  to 
speak  to  Uncle  Isaac  and  Sam  when  they  came  on 
for  their  gunning  excursion,  in  order  to  obtain  the 
aid  of  one  to  do  the  joiner,  and  the  other  the 
mason  work,  for  he  and  Charlie  could  do  the  out 
side  work.  While  preparing  the  cargo  of  the  Ark, 
Ben  had  laid  by,  from  time  to  time,  such  handsome, 
clear  boards  and  plank  as  he  came  across,  which 
were  now  thoroughly  seasoned,  having  been  kept 
in  the  chamber  of  the  house.  He  also  had  on 
hand  shingles  and  clapboards. 

They  now  began  to  remove  the  hemlock  bark 
from  the  roof,  and  replace  it  with  shingles.  To 
work  with  tools,  to  make  something  for  his  father 
and  mother,  was  ever  a  favorite  employment  of 
Charlie. 

Aside  from  this,  his  great  delight  was  to  make 
boats;  his  house  under  the  big  maple  was  half  full 


22      THE    YOUNG    SUIP-BUILDEKS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

of  boats,  of  all  sizes,  from  three  inches  to  two  feet 
long.  As  he  sat  by  the  fire  in  the  evenings,  he 
was  almost  always  whittling  out  a  boat.  When  he 
went  to  Boston,  in  the  Perseverance,  he  sought  the 
ship-yards  and  boat-builders'  shops.  He  had  a  boat 
on  each  corner  of  the  barn,  one  on  the  top  of  the 
big  pine,  and  one  on  the  maple,  besides  having 
made  any  number  for  John,  Fred,  and  little  Bob 
Smullen. 

He  was  now  greatly  exercised  in  spirit  in  respect 
to  the  boat  he  was  to  make  from  the  big  log.  He 
had  resolved  to  make  a  model,  and  then  imitate  it, 
and  was  racking  his  brain  in  respect  to  the  pro 
portions;  for  he  was  very  anxious  she  should  be  a 
good  sailer. 

He  had  not  a  moment  to  spare  while  they  were 
shingling  the  house,  it  being  necessary  to  do  it 
quickly,  for  fear  of  rain ;  but  the  moment  the  roof 
was  completed,  he  hid  himself  in  the  woods,  and 
with  blocks  set  to  work  upon  the  model. 

While  thus  busied,  he  recollected  having  heard 
Captain  Rhines  say,  that  if  anybody  could  model 
a  vessel  like  a  fish,  it  would  sail  fast  enough.  He 
thought  a  mackerel  was  the  fastest  fish  within  his 
reach. 

"  There   are  mackerel   most   always   round  the 


GUNNING    ON    THE    OUTER   BEEFS,  lid 

wash  rocks,"  said  he.  "I'll  model  her  after  a 
mackerel." 

The  next  morning,  just  before  sunrise,  he  was 
off  the  reef,  in  the  "Twilight,"  and  succeeded  in 
catching  three  mackerel  and  some  rock-fish.  Not 
wishing  any  spectators  of  his  proceedings,  he  hid 
the  biggest  mackerel  in  some  water,  to  keep  him 
plump,  took  the  others,  and  went  in  to  breakfast. 
lie  next  took  some  of  the  blue  clay  from  the  bed 
of  the  brook,  th;it  was  entirely  free  from  stones  and 
grit,  and  would  not  dull  a  razor;  and,  mixing 
it  with  water  and  sand,  till  it  was  of  the  right 
consistence,  put  it  into  a  trough.  Into  this  paste 
he  carefully  pressed  the  fish ;  then  he  took  up  the 
trough,  and,  finding  a  secret  place  at  the  shore, 
where  the  sun  would  come  with  full  power,  he 
placed  it  on  the  rocks,  and  sifted  sand  an  inch 
thick  over  the  clay  and  fish,  and  left  it  to  harden. 

In  the  course  of  three  days,  he  found  the  fish 
had  putrefied,  and  the  clay  gradually  hardened 
under  the  sand  without  breaking.  lie  now  swept 
oft'  the  sand,  exposing  it  to  the  full  force  of  the 
sun  till  it  was  completely  dry;  then  he  made  a 
slow  fire,  and  put  the  trough  and  clay  into  it,  in 
creasing  the  heat  gradually  till  he  burned  the 
trough  uway,  and  left  the  clay  with  the  exact 


24       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

impress  of  the  mackerel  in  it,  as  red  and  hard 
as  a  brick. 

"There's  the  shape  of  the  mackerel,  anyhow," 
said  Charlie,  contemplating  his  work  with  great 
satisfaction ;  "  but  how  I'm  going  to  get  a  model 
from  it  is  the  question ;  however,  there  is  time 
enough  to  think  of  that  between  this  and 
spring." 

He  deposited  his  model  in  his  house  under 
the  great  maple,  and  devoted  all  his  time  to 
helping  his  father  improve  the  appearance  of  the 
house. 

Our  readers  will  recollect  that  the  logs,  of  which 
the  house  was  built,  were  hewed  square  at  the 
corners  and  windows ;  so  Ben  and  Charlie  just 
built  a  staging,  and,  stretching  a  chalk  line,  hewed 
the  whole  broadside  from  the  ridge-pole  to  the  sill 
square  with  the  corners.  They  accomplished  this 
quite  easily  at  the  ends,  but  on  the  front  and  back 
it  was  more  difficult  to  hew  the  top  log  under  the 
eaves ;  but  they  worked  it  out  with  the  adze. 

Originally  the  house  had  but  two  windows  on  a 
side,  and,  as  these  were  on  the  corners  to  admit  of 
putting  in  others,  it  looked  queer  enough.  They 
now  cut  out  places  for  two  more  in  a  side,  and  in 
tended,  after  having  smoothed  the  walls,  to  clap- 


GUNNING    ON    THE    OUTER    REEFS.  25 

board  them ;  but  their  work  was  interrupted  for 
the  time  by  the  arrival  of  Uncle  Isaac,  Joe  Griffin, 
Uncle  Sam,  and  Captain  Rhincs.  to  go  on  the  long- 
talked-of  gunning  excursion. 

o  .      o 

"  I  don't  see,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  "  how  you  do 
so  much  work;  I  think  it  is  wonderful,  the  amount 
you  and  this  boy  have  done  since  we  were  here." 

"There's  one  thing  you  don't  consider,"  said 
Ben:  "a  person  here  is  not  hindered;  there's  not 
some  one  running  in  and  out  all  the  time,  and  he 
is  not  stopping  to  look  at  people  that  go  along  the 
road  ;  he's  not  plagued  with  other  people's  cattle, 
and  don't  have  to  fence  against  them  ;  he's  not  out 
evenings  visiting,  but  goes  to  bed  when  he  has 
done  work,  and  the  next  morning  he  feels  keen  to 
go  to  work  again.  It's  my  opinion,  if  a  man  is 
contented,  he  will  stand  his  work  better,  live 
longer,  and  be  happier,  on  one  of  these  islands 
than  anywhere  else." 

As  they  were  to  start  at  twelve  o'clock  at  night, 
they  went  to  bed  at  dark.  Captain  Rhines  slept 
on  board  the  vessel,  as  he  could  wake  at  any  hour 
lie  chose.  lie  was  to  call  the  others  if  the  weather 
was  good ;  if  not,  they  were  to  wait  for  another 
chance.  It  was  bright  moonlight;  a  little  wind, 
north-west,  just  enough  to  carry  them  along,  and 


26       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

perfectly  smooth.  The  place  to  which  they  were 
bound  was  an  outlying  rock  in  the  open  ocean, 
more  than  seven  miles  beyond  the  farthest  land, 
upon  which,  even  in  calm  weather,  the  ground 
swell  of  the  ocean  broke  in  sheets  of  white  foam, 
and  with  a  roar  like  thunder ;  but  when  a  strong 
northerly  wind  had  been  blowing  for  a  day  or  two, 
it  drove  back  the  ground  swell,  and  when  the 
northerly  wind  in  its  turn  died  away,  there  would 
be  a  few  hours,  and  sometimes  a  day  or  two,  of 
calm,  when  there  was  not  the  least  motion,  and 
you  might  land  on  the  rock ;  but  it  was  a  delicate 
and  dangerous  proceeding,  requiring  great  watch 
fulness,  for  although  there  might  be  no  wind  at 
the  spot,  yet  the  wind  blowing  at  sea,  miles  dis 
tant,  might  in  a  few  moments  send  in  the  ground 
swell  and  cut  off  all  hope  of  escape.  As  the  north 
wind  made  no  ground  swell,  the  rock  could  be 
approached  on  the  south  side,  even  when  a  mod 
erate  north  wind  was  blowing. 

They  were  familiar  with  all  these  facts,  and  had 
accordingly  chosen  the  last  of  a  norther,  that  had 
been  blowing  twro  days,  and  was  dying  away. 

Some  hours  before  day  they  arrived  at  the 
place  —  a  large  barren  rock,  containing  about  three 
acres,  with  a  little  patch  of  grass  on  the  highest 


GUNNING    ON    THE    OUTER   EEEFS.  27 

part  of  it,  and  a  spring  of  pure  water,  that  spouted 
up  from  the  crevices  in  the  rock ;  a  quantity  of 
wild  pea  vines  and  bayberry  bushes  were  growing 
there,  among  which,  in  little  hollows  in  the  rock, 
the  sea-gulls  laid  their  eggs,  without  any  attempt 
at  a  nest. 

As  they  neared  the  rock,  they  sailed  through 
whole  flocks  of  sea-birds ;  some  of  them,  asleep  on 
the  water,  with  their  heads  beneath  their  wings, 
took  no  notice  of  them ;  others,  as  they  heard  the 
slight  ripple  made  by  the  vessel's  bows,  flew  or 
swam  to  a  short  distance,  and  then  remained  quiet. 

Xot  a  word  was  spoken  save  in  whisper,  when, 
at  a  short  distance  outside  the  rock,  the  sails  were 
gently  lowered,  and  the  anchor  silently  dropped 
without  a  splash  to  the  bottom.  The  "decoys," 
that  is,  wooden  blocks  made  and  painted  in  imita 
tion  of  sea-birds,  and  the  guns,  were  put  into  the 
canoe,  and  landing  in  a  little  cove,  they  gently 
hauled  the  canoe  upon  the  sea-weed,  and  anchored 
their  decoys  with  lines  and  stones  a  little  way 
from  the  rock,  so  as  to  present  the  appearance  of  a 
Hock  of  sea-fowl  feeding,  and,  lying  down,  awaited 
daybreak. 

The  sea-fowl  lie  outside  during  the  night,  but  as 
the  day  breaks  they  begin  to  fly  into  the  bay  after 


28      THE    YbUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

food  and  water,  and  when  they  see  the  decoys, 
they  light  down  among  them  and  are  shot;  they 
are  also  shot  on  the  wing  as  they  fly  over ;  and  in 
those  days  they  were  very  numerous  among  all  the 
rocks  and  islands. 

It  was  a  terribly  wild  and  desolate  place;  the 
tide  at  half  ebb  revealed  the  rock  in  its  full  propor 
tions;  on  the  shore  side  it  ran  out  into  long,  broken 
points,  ragged  and  worn,  with  innumerable  holes 
and  fissures,  fringed  with  kelp,  whose  dark-red 
leaves,  matted  with  green,  lay  upon  the  surface 
of  the  water;  while  on  the  ocean  side,  the  long, 
upright  cliffs  dropped  plump  into  the  sea,  and 
were  covered  with  a  peculiar  kind  of  sea-weed, 
short,  because,  worn  by  the  ceaseless  action  of  the 
waves,  it  had  no  time  to  grow :  all  impressed 
the  mind  with  a  singular  feeling  of  loneliness  and 
desolation. 

These  hardy  men,  born  among  the  surf,  and  by 
no  means  given  to  sentiment,  could  not  repress  a 
feeling  of  awe,  as  they  lay  there  silent,  and  listened 
to  the  roar  of  the  sea,  that  rolled  in  eddies  of  white 
foam  among  the  ragged  points,  being  raised  by  the 
north  wind,  while  on  the  other  side  there  was  not 
a  motion. 

There  is  something  in  the  hoarse  roar  of  the 


GUNNING   ON    THE    OUTER   REEFS.  29 

surf,  when  heard  in  the  dead  hours  of  night  on 
such  a  spot,  that  is  more  than  sublime  —  it  is  cruel, 
relentless.  As  we  listen  to  it  in  such  a  place,  from 
which  there  is  more  than  a  possibility  that  we 
may  not  escape,  we  realize  how  impotent  is  the 
strength  or  skill  of  man  against  the  terrific  rush 
of  waters.  We  call  to  mind  how  many  death-cries 
that  sullen  roar  has  drowned,  how  many  mighty 
ships  that  gray  foam  has  ground  to  powder,  and 
look  narrowly  to  see  if  the  giant  that  thus  moans 
in  his  slumbers  is  not  about  to  rouse  himself  for 
our  destruction.  Yet  to  strong  natures  there  is 
an  indescribable  charm  that  clings  to  places  and 
perils  like  these,  and  does  not  fade  away  with  the 
occasion,  but  lives  in  the  memory  ever  after. 
These  men  could  have  shot  sea-fowl  enough  near 
Lome,  without  fatigue  or  peril;  but  that  very  safety 
would  have  diminished  the  pleasure. 

It  was  evident  that  thoughts  similar  to  those  we 
have  described  were  passing  through  Ben's  mind. 

He  said,  in  a  whisper,  "Uncle  Isaac,  do  you 
suppose  the  sea  ever  breaks  over  here  ?  " 

"  I  suppose  it  does,"  was  the  reply ;  "  but  onlj 
when  a  very  high  tide  and  a  gale  of  wind  come 
together.  Old  Mr.  Sam  Edwards  came  on  here 
once  in  November,  and  his  canoe  broke  her 


30      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

painter  and  got  away  from  him,  and  he  had  to  stay 
ten  days,  when  a  vessel  took  him  off;  but  they  had 
a  desperate  time  to  get  him;  and  when  they  got 
him  he  couldn't  speak.  He  piled  up  a  great  heap 
of  rocks  to  stand  upon,  to  make  signals  to  vessels, 
and  to  keep  the  wind  off;  and  when  he  went  on 
the  next  spring  they  were  gone." 

"  But  there  is  white  clover .  growing  here,  and 
red-top,  which  shows  that  the  salt  water  cannot 
come  very  often,  nor  stay  very  long  when  it  does 
come." 

It  was  now  getting  towards  day ;  they  had  three 
guns  apiece,  which  they  loaded,  and  placed  within 
reach  of  their  hands.  As  the  day  broke,  the  birds 
began  to  come,  first  scattering,  then  in  flocks;  as 
they  came  on,  they  continued  to  fire  as  fast  as  they 
could  load,  the  birds  falling  by  dozens  into  the 
water,  until  the  birds  were  done  flying,  the  sun 
being  well  up. 

They  now  took  the  canoe  and  picked  up  the 
dead  and  wounded  birds,  many  of  the  latter 
requiring  a  second  shot,  then  going  on  board  the 
schooner  with  their  booty,  got  their  breakfast, 
after  which  they  ran  off  ten  miles  to  sea,  on  to  a 
shoal,  to  try  for  codfish;  and  as  they  had  menhaden 
and  herring  for  bait,  they  caught  them  in  plenty. 


GUNNING    ON   THE    OUTER   REEFS.  31 

"  Halloo  ! "  said  Ben  ;  "  I've  got  a  halibut ;  stand 
by,  father,  with  the  gaff." 

They  caught  three  more  in  the  course  of  the 
forenoon.  After  dinner  they  split  and  salted  their 
fish,  and  cutting  out  the  nape  and  fins  of  the  hali 
but,  threw  all  the  rest  away,  as  in  those  days  they 
did  not  think  it  worth  saving. 

"Xow,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  "what  do  you  think 
of  having  a  night  at  the  hake  ?  " 

They  ran  into  muddy  bottom  near  to  the  rock, 
anchored,  and  lay  down  to  sleep  till  dark,  and 
then  began  to  catch  hake.  The  hake  is  a  fish 
that  feeds  on  the  muddy  bottom,  and  bites  best  in 
the  night. 

Just  before  day  they  wrent  on  to  the  rock  again, 
and  shot  more  birds  than  before.  Uncle  Isaac  and 
the  others  were  so  much  engrossed  with  their 
sport,  that  they  thought  of  nothing  else.  But  Ben, 
who  was  naturally  vigilant,  and  had  noticed  that 
there  was  a  little  air  of  wind  to  the  south,  and  the 
sea  had  a  different  motion,  kept  his  eye  upon  it, 
and  shoved  the  canoe  to  the  edge  of  the  water. 
All  at  once  he  exclaimed,  in  startling  tones,  — 

'  O  / 

"  To  the  boat !     The  sea  is  coming !  " 
They   seized   their  guns,  and   sprang   into   the 
canoe. 


32      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"I'll  shove  off,"  said  Ben. 

Uncle  Isaac  and  Captain  Rhines  took  the  oars, 
while  Uncle  Sam,  on  his  knees,  was  ready  to  bale 
out  what  water  might  come  in. 

The  great  black  wave  could  now  be  seen  rolling 
up  higher  and  higher  as  it  came.  Ben,  giving  the 
canoe  a  vigorous  shove,  which  sent  her  some  yards 
from  the  rock,  leaped  in,  and  grasped  the  steering 
paddle,  keeping  her  directly  on  to  meet  the 
threatening  wave.  As  she  met  it  and  rose  upon 
it,  she  stood  almost  upright ;  and  for  a  moment  it 
seemed  as  if  she  would  fall  back  and  be  dashed  on 
the  rock  ;  but  the  powerful  strokes  of  the  resolute 
oarsmen,  added  to  the  momentum  she  had  already 
attained,  forced  her  up  the  ascent,  and  they  were 
safe.  Had  they  been  twice  her  length  nearer  the 
rock,  they  had  been  lost,  as  the  sea,  arrested  in  its 
progress  by  the  rock,  "combed"  (curled  over), 
when  nothing  could  have  saved  them. 

"  A  miss  is  as  good  as  a  mile,"  said  the  captain, 
as  he  looked  back  and  saw  the  spot  where  they 
had  so  lately  stood  white  with  foam. 

"  I've  left  rny  best  powder-horn,"  said  Ben. 

"  We've  left  a  couple  dozen  of  birds,"  said  Uncle 
Isaac ;  "  but  we've  enough  without  them." 

They   now   dressed   the   fish  they  had  caught, 


GUNNING    ON    THE    OUTER    REEFS.  33 

went  to  sleep,  and  slept  till  noon ;  then,  as  they 
had  a  fair  wind  home,  debated,  while  sitting  in  the 
little  cabin,  what  they  should  do  more. 

"We  have  some  bait  left,"  said  Uncle  Isaac; 
"  we  ought  to  do  something  more." 

"  Hark  I "  cried  the  captain,  whose  ear  had 
caught  a  familiar  sound;  "mackerel,  as  I  am  a 
sinner ! " 

Rushing  on  deck,  they  saw  mackerel  all  around 
the  vessel,  leaping  from  the  water,  their  white 
bellies  glancing  in  the  sun.  In  a  moment  lines 
were  thrown  over  with  bait,  and  soon  numbers  of 
them  were  flapping  on  the  deck. 

It  was  now  near  sundown,  the  wind  began  to 
blow  in  fitful  gusts,  and  once  in  a  while,  amid  the 
constant  dash  of  waves,  a  great  sea  would  come 
and  break  with  a  roar  far  above  the  general  dash 
of  waters.  But  they  were  too  eager  in  the  pursuit 
of  their  prize  to  heed  the  weather. 

At  length  a  few  drops  of  rain  falling  on  the 
captain's  bare  arms  caused  him.  to  look  up  and 
around. 

lie  instantly  exclaimed, — 

"Haul  in  your  lines;  we  must  be  out  of  this; 
we  are  full  near  enough  to  these  breakers  to  have 
them  under  our  lee,  and  nitrht  coming  on." 

'  O  O 

3 


34       THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

It  was  a  most  perilous  position  to  the  eye  of  a 
landsman,  and  not  without  risk  to  them.  The 
vessel  was  rolling  heavily  at  her  anchor  less  than 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  rock,  and  abreast  of 
the  middle  and  highest  part  of  it,  while  its  long, 
shoal  points  stretched  out  each  way  for  more  than 
a  mile,  white  with  foam  ;  the  whole  ground  also, 
for  three  or  four  miles  around  the  rock,  was  full 
of  shoal  spots  and  sunken  reefs,  which  made  a  bad, 
irregular  sea;  and  the  roar  from  so  many  breakers 
was  terrible.  But  if  there  is  anything  that  will  do 
its  duty  in  a  heavy  head-beat  sea,  it  is  an  old- 
fashioned  pinkie. 

As  the  little  craft,  gathering  way,  came  up  to 
the  wind,  the  sea  poured  in  floods  over  her  bows, 
while,  with  whole  sail  and  her  lee  rail  under  water, 
she  jumped  through  it,  and  gradually  drew  off 
from  the  dangerous  reefs. 

Leaving  the  long  reefs  to  the  leeward,  they  now 
kept  away  before  it  with  a  fair  wind  for  home. 
Taking  in  all  but  the  foresail,  they  went  along 
under  moderate  sail,  that  they  might  split  their 
fish  as  they  went,  and  before  dark. 

When  they  reached  the  island,  it  was  quite 
dusk.  The  sea  was  pouring  in  sheets  of  foam 
upon  the  rocks,  and  the  white  froth,  drifting  to 


GUNNING    ON    THE    OUTER    EEEFS.  35 

leeward,  had  filled  the  main  channel ;  so  that 
to  enter  it  seemed,  to  an  inexperienced  eye,  to 
be  rushing  into  the  very  jaws  of  destruction;  but, 
as  they  dashed  along  by  the  very  edge  of  the 
surf  that  fringed  the  "Junk  of  Pork,"  just  when 
the  little  vessel,  rising  on  the  crest  of  a  ti'emen- 
dous  wave,  seemed  to  be  rushing  directly  on  the 
rocks,  Ben,  who  stood  at  the  fore-sheet,  hauled  it 
aft,  the  captain  put  down  his  helm,  and  the  vessel, 
luffing  up,  shot  through  the  froth  and  around  the 
point  into  the  quiet  harbor  in  front  of  the  house. 
Uncle  Isaac  let  go  the  anchor,  and  in  a  moment 
she  was  peacefully  riding  where  there  was  not  a 
ripple,  with  the  roar  of  surf  all  around  her,  and 
bunches  of  white  froth  drifting  lazily  alongside. 

It  is  these  strong  contrasts  which  make  the 
charm  of  life  along  shore,  and  that  so  attach  rug 
ged  spirits  to  the  sea;  and  though  those  who  live 
among  these  scenes  do  not  talk  about  them  as 
others  do,  who  seldom  witness  them,  yet  they  feel 
them,  and  they  are  a  part  of  their  life.  Taking 
out  the  birds  and  guns,  they  put  them  into  the 
canoe  to  take  on  shore.  Charlie  met  them  there, 
and  was  dumb  with  astonishment  at  the  sight  of 
so  many  birds. 

They  were  wet,  tired,  cold,  and  hungry,  for  they 


36       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

had  been  fishing  day  and  night ;  but  as  they  en. 
tered  the  house,  all  was  changed.  A  blazing  fire 
was  roaring  in  the  great  chimney,  and  flinging  its 
cheerful  light  on  the  bright  pewter  on  the  dressers 
and  snow-white  floor. 

The  table  stood  in  the  floor,  covered  with  smok 
ing  victuals,  and  Sally,  with  her  handsome  face 
shining  with  joy,  stood  ready  to  greet  her  hus 
band.  Sailor  was  at  her  side,  wagging  his  tail 
with  frantic  violence,  ready  to  jump  upon  his 
master  as  soon  as  Sally  should  release  him. 
There  were  also  warm  water,  soap,  and  towels  to 
wash  the  "  gurry  "  from  their  hands,  and  the  salt 
of  the  spray  from  their  faces.  Great  was  the 
physical  and  mental  happiness  of  these  tired, 
hungry  men,  as  they  sat  down  to  eat,  conscious 
that  they  had  succeeded  in  their  efforts,  and  ob 
tained  the  means  of  comfort  and  support  for  their 
families. 

Perhaps  some  of  our  readers  may  think  it 
strange  that  Ben  should  want  to  go  fishing  when 
he  had  been  engaged  in  that  business  all  summer; 
but  the  fish  caught  in  the  hot  weather  were  salted 
very  heavily,  in  order  to  keep  them,  and  that  they 
might  bear  exportation  to  all  parts  of  the  world ; 
but  these  were  to  be  slack  salted  for  their  own  use. 


INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  37 


CHAPTER  III. 

INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS. 

BEFORE  his  father  and  friends  returned  home, 
Ben  agreed  with  Uncle  Isaac  and  Sam  to  come 
and  commence  work  on  the  house  whenever  lie 
should  send  for  them,  and  at  the  same  time  made 
an  arrangement  with  his  father  to  take  some  fish 
and  lumber  to  Salem  in  the  schooner,  and  procure 
for  him  some  bricks,  hearth-tiles,  window-glass, 
door-hinges,  latches,  materials  for  making  putty, 
and  other  things  needed  about  the  house. 

"My  nephew,  Sam  Atkins,"  said  Uncle  Isaac, 
"who  is  a  capital  workman, is  coming  home  to  stay 
a  good  part  of  the  winter.  He  works  on  all  the 
nicest  houses  in  Salem.  I'll  bring  him  on  with 
me." 

It  may  not  be  amiss,  for  the  information  of  those 
who  have  not  read  the  first  volume  of  the  series, 
to  glance  for  a  moment  at  the  house,  in  respect  to 
which  all  these  improvements  were  contemplated. 
Ben  wanted  to  dig  a  cellar,  a  few  rods  off,  and 


38       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

build  a  good  frame  house,  of  two  stories;  but 
Sally  preferred  to  finish  the  old  walls.  She  said 
it  was  large  enough,  that  the  timber  walls  would 
be  warmer  than  any  frame  house,  and  she  loved 
the  first  spot.  "Better  save  the  money  to  buy 
cows,  or  to  help  some  young  man  along  that 
wanted,  a  vessel." 

The  kitchen  extended  the  whole  length  of  the 
house,  and  occupied  half  its  width.  At  the  eastern 
end  a  door  opened  directly  to  the  weather;  there 
was  no  entry.  In  the  corner  beside  the  door  was 
a  ladder,  by  which  access  was  gained  to  the  cham 
ber  through  a  scuttle  in  the  floor. 

Against  the  wall  at  the  other  end  were  the 
dressers,  and  under  them  a  small  closet.  There 
was  no  finish  around  the  chimney,  and  on  either 
side  of  it  two  doors,  of  rough  boards,  hung  on 
wooden  hinges,  opened  into  the  front  part  of  the 
house,  which  was  in  one  large  room.  The  cellar, 
which  only  extended  under  the  front  part  of  the 
house,  was  reached  by  a  trap  door. 

The  floors  were  well  laid,  of  clear  stuff,  and  the 
kitchen  floor  was  white  and  smooth  by  the  use  of 
soap,  and  sand,  and  much  friction. 

The  first  thing  Ben  did  when  his  men,  Uncle 
Isaac,  Atkins,  and  Robert  Yelf,  came,  was  to  build 


INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  39 

a  porch,  into  which  was  moved  Charlie's  sink,  and 
at  one  end  of  which  a  store-room  was  made,  where 
Sally  could  do  part  of  her  work,  while  everything 
was  in  confusion. 

During  the  time  the  joiners  were  at  work  upon 
the  porch,  Ben  and  Charlie  dug  a  cellar  under  the 
rest  of  the  house,  hauled  the  rocks  from  the  shore, 
and  Uncle  Sam  built  the  wall,  and  also  took  up 
the  stone  hearths  iu  the  front  part  of  the  house, 
and  laid  them  with  tiles,  and  built  two  fireplaces. 
He  also  laid  a  hearth  with  tiles  in  the  kitchen, 
leaving  a  large  stone  in  one  corner  to  wash 

o  o 

dishes  on. 

"Ben,"  said  Uncle  Sam,  "I  told  you,  when  I 
laid  your  door-steps,  that  they  were  the  best  of 
granite,  and  would  make  as  handsome  steps  as  any 
in  the  town  of  Boston,  and  that  whenever  you 
built  a  new  house,  if  I  was  not  past  labor,  I  would 
dress  them  for  you.  I  have  brought  on  my  tools, 
and  now  am  going  to  do  it." 

"I'm  very  much  obliged  to  you,  Uncle  Sam,  but 
I  am  able  and  willing  to  pay  you  for  it  now." 

"  Xo,  you  ain't  going  to  pay  me ;  'twill  be  some 
thing  for  you  to  remember  me  by." 

They  now  set  up  their  joiner's  bench  in  the 
front  part  of  the  house,  where  they  could  have  a 


40       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

fire  in  cold  days.  Ben  and  Charlie  worked  with 
them,  and  the  work  went  on  apace.  At  Sally's  re 
quest,  they  began  with  the  kitchen,  removing  the 
dressers  from,  the  western  end,  and  finishing  off  a 
bedroom,  leaving  room  sufficient  at  the  end  for  a 
stairway  to  go  down  into  a  nice  milk  cellar,  which 
Uncle  Sam  had  parted  off,  and  floored  with  brick, 
and  the  joiners  put  up  shelves,  with  a  glass  win 
dow  in  the  end,  and  another  in  the  top  of  the  door 
that  led  to  it  from  the  kitchen.  They  also  replaced 
the  dressers  in  the  kitchen.  At  the  eastern  end 
they  made  an  entry,  on  one  side  of  it  a  dark  closet 
to  keep  meats  in  from  the  flies,  and  on  the  other 
chamber  stairs,  instead  of  the  ladder,  and  under 
these  cellar  stairs,  replacing  the  old  trap  door. 

They  then  finished  the  room,  ceiling  it,  both  the 
walls  and  overhead.  It  was  not  customary  then 
to  paint.  Everything  was  left  white,  and  scoured 
with  soap  and  sand.  Carpets  were  not  in  vogue, 
and  floors  were  strewn  with  white  sand. 

Sally  was  jubilant,  and  declared  it  was  nothing 
but  a  pleasure  to  do  work,  with  so  many  con 
veniences. 

"I  thought  I  was  made,"  said  she,  "  when  I  got 
a  sink,  and  especially  a  crane,  instead  of  a  birch 
withe,  to  hang  my  pot  on.  Now  I've  got  a  sink, 


INTERNAL    IMFKOVEMENTS.  41 

a  crane,  porch,  meal-room,  cellar  stairs,  chamber 
stairs,  milk  cellar,  and  kitchen,  all  ceiled  up." 

In  the  front  room  the  work  proceeded  more 
slowly,  as  there  was  a  good  deal  of  panel-work,  and 
this  occupied  a  great  deal  of  time. 

There  were  then  no  planing  mills,  jig  saws,  cir 
cular  saws,  or  mortising  machines,  but  all  was  done 
by  hand  labor.  There  were  no  cut  nails  then,  but 
all  were  wrought,  with  sharp  points  that  split  the 
wood,  which  made  it  necessary  to  bore  a  great  deal 
with  a  gimlet. 

A  happy  boy  was  Charlie  Bell  in  these  days,  as 
Uncle  Isaac  and  Atkins  gave  him  all  the  instruc 
tion  in  their  power;  and  to  complete  the  sum  of 
his  enjoyment,  after  he  had  worked  with  them  six 
weeks,  Uncle  Isaac  set  him  to  making  the  front 
and  end  doors  of  panel-work,  under  his  immediate 
inspection.  lie  also  had  an  opportunity  to  talk 
about  the  Indians,  and  seemed  to  be  a  great  deal 
more  concerned  to  know  about  their  modes  of 
getting  along,  and  manufacturing  articles  of  neces 
sity  or  ornament,  without  tools  of  iron,  than  about 
their  murdering  and  scalping. 

Uncle  Isaac  could  not,  from  personal  knowledge, 
give  him  much  information  in  respect  to  these 
matters,  as,  at  the  time  he  was  among  them,  they 


42       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

were,  and  had  been  for  a  long  period,  supplied, 
both  by  the  French  and  English,  with  guns, 
knives,  hatchets,  needles,  and  files ;  but  he  could 
furnish  Charlie  with  abundant  information  which 
he  had  obtained  from  his  Indian  parents ;  for,  as 
they  have  no  books,  but  trust  to  their  memories, 
they,  by  exercise,  become  very  accurate,  and  their 
traditions  are,  in  this  way,  handed  down  from 
father  to  son. 

"But,"  said  Charlie,  who  had  heard  about  In 
dians  having  cornfields,  "  how  could  they  cut  down 
trees  and  clear  land  with  stone  hatchets?  " 

"  They  didn't  cut  them  down ;  they  bruised  the 
bark,  and  girdled  them,  and  then  the  trees  died, 
and  they  set  them  on  fire." 

"I  should  think  it  would  have  taken  them  for 
ever,  most,  to  clear  a  piece  of  land  in  that  way." 

"So  it  did;  but  they  did  not  clear  one  very 
often.  When  they  got  a  field  cleared,  they  plant 
ed  corn  on  it  perhaps  for  a  hundred  years." 

"  I  should  think  it  would  have  run  out." 

"They  always  made  these  fields  by  the  salt 
water,  and  put  fish  in  the  hills.  They  taught  the 
white  people  how  to  raise  corn." 

"I  have  heard  they  made  log  canoes.  How 
could  they  cut  the  trees  down  with  their  stone 


INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  43 

hatchets  ?  and,  more  than  all,  how  could  they  ever 
dig  them  out?" 

"I  will  tell  you,  Mr.  Inquisitive.  An  Indian 
would  take  a  bag  of  parched  corn  to  eat,  a  gourd 
shell  to  drink  from,  his  stone  hatchet,  and  go  into 
the  woods,  find  a  suitable  tree,  —  generally  a  dead, 
dry  pine,  with  the  limbs  and  bark  all  fallen  off,  — 
and  at  the  foot  of  it  would  build  a  camp  to  sleep 
under.  Then  he  would  get  a  parcel  of  wet  clay, 
and  plaster  the  tree  all  around,  then  build  a  fire  at 
the  bottom  to  burn  it  off.  The  wet  clay  would 
prevent  its  burning  too  high  up.  Then  he  would 
sit  and  tend  the  fire,  wet  the  clay,  and  beat  off  the 
coals  as  fast  as  they  formed,  till  the  tree  fell ;  then 
cut  it  off,  and  hollow  it  in  the  same  way." 

'•  I  should  think  it  would  have  taken  a  life 
time." 

"It  did  not  take  as  long  as  you  might  suppose; 
besides,  time  was  nothing  to  them.  They  did  no 
work  except  to  hunt,  make  a  canoe,  or  bow  and 
arrows.  The  squaws  did  all  the  drudgery."' 

Uncle  Isaac  now  went  home  to  stay  a  week,  and 
see  to  his  affairs,  and  Atkins  with  him.  In  this 
interval,  Charlie  began  to  think  about  his  long- 
neglected  boat.  lie  had  already  thy  exact  model 
of  the  fish,  but  he  wished  to  get  it  in  a  shape  to 


44      THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM 

work  from.  Mixing  some  more  clay  and  sand,  he 
filled  the  mould  with  it,  into  which  he  had  pressed 
the  fish,  having  first  greased  it  thoroughly,  that  it 
might  not  stick.  He  now  set  it  to  dry,  putting  it 
in  the  cellar  at  night.  When  thoroughly  dry,  he 
turned  it  out,  made  an  oven  of  stones,  and  baked 
it,  so  that  it  was  in  a  state  to  be  handled  without 
crumbling.  He  did  not  wish  Ben  or  Sally  to  ob 
serve  his  proceedings;  and,  as  it  was  too  cold  to 
stay  in  the  woods  or  barn,  he  resorted  to  his  bed 
room.  Uncle  Isaac,  when  there,  slept  with  Chai'- 
lie,  and  kept  his  chest  beside  their  bed. 

Charlie  was  sitting  on  the  bed,  with  the  model 
in  his  hand,  looking  at  it,  and  contriving  how  to 
work  from  it;   and  so  intently  was  he  engaged,  that 
Uncle  Isaac,  who,  unknown  to  him,  had  returned, 
and  wanted  something  from  his  chest,  came  upon 
him  before  he  could  shove  it  under  the  bed. 
"What  have  you  got  there,  Charlie?" 
"  O,  Uncle  Isaac,  I'm  so  sorry  to  see  you ! " 
"  Sorry  to  see  me,  Charlie  ?     Indeed,  I'm  sorry 
to  hear  you  say  so." 

"  O,  I  didn't  mean  that,"  replied  Charlie,  exces 
sively  confused.     "I  —  I  —  I  —  only  meant  that  I 
was  sorry  you  caught  me  with  this  in  my  hand." 
He  then  told  Uncle  Isaac  what  he  was  about, 


INTERNAL   IMPROVEMENTS.  45 

adding,  in  conclusion,  "You  see,  when- 1  am  trying 
to  study  anything  out,  I  don't  like  to  have  folks 
that  know  all  about  it  looking  on  ;  it  confuses  and 
quite  upsets  me." 

"But  if  you  ever  make  the  boat,  you  will  have 
to  make  it  out  of  doors,  in  plain  sight." 

"  Yes,  sir ;  but  if  I  succeed  in  making  a  good 
model,  I  know  I  can  imitate  it  on  a  large  scale,  and 
shan't  be  afraid  then  to  do  it  before  folks ;  but  if  I 
can't,  why,  then  I  will  burn  the  model  up,  and  no 
body  will  be  the  wiser  for  it,  or  know  that  I  tried 
and  couldn't.  I'm  not  afraid  to  have  any  one  see 
me  handle  tools." 

"You  have  no  reason  to  be,  my  boy.  Yet,  after 
all,  it  was  a  very  good  thing  that  I  surprised  you 
before  you  got  any  farther;  for,  had  you  built  a 
large  boat  after  these  lines,  she  never  would  have 
been  of  any  use  to  you." 

"Why  not?" 

"  Because  this  is  precisely  the  shape  of  a  mack, 
erel,  to  a  shaving." 

"  AVell,  don't  a  mackerel  sail  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sail  like  blazes,  under  water ;  but  I  take  it 
you  want  your  boat  to  sail  on  top  of  water.  All  a 
fish  has  to  do  is  to  carry  himself  through  the  water ; 
but  a  boat  or  vessel  has  to  carry  cargo,  and 


46       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

bear  sail.  A  vessel  made  after  that  model  wouldn't 
stand  up  in  the  harbor  with  her  spars  in,  and  a 
boat  made  like  it  would  have  to  be  filled  so  full  of 
ballast,  to  keep  her  on  her  legs,  that  she  would  be 
almost  sunk ;  and  the  moment  you  put  sail  on  her, 
in  anything  of  a  working  breeze,  her  after-sail 
would  jam  her  stern  down,  and  she  would  fill 
over  the  quarter." 

Charlie  looked  very  blank  indeed  at  this,  which 
seemed  at  one  fell  blow  to  render  abortive  all  his 
patient  toil,  and  annihilate  those  sanguine  hopes 
of  proud  enjoyment  he  and  Jo'hn  had  cherished, 
when  they  should  appear  in  their  new  craft  among 
the  fleet  of  dug-outs,  then  below  contempt,  and 
witness  the  look  of  mingled  astonishment  and 
envy  on  the  faces  of  the  other  boys,  especially  as 
he  began  to  feel  a  growing  conviction  that  what 
Uncle  Isaac  had  said  was  but  too  true.  Still 
struggling  against  the  umvelcome  truth,  he  re 
plied,  after  a  long  pause,  "But  a  mackerel  keeps 
on  his  bottom." 

"Yes,  because  he's  alive,  and  can  balance  him 
self  by  his  fins. and  tail;  but  he  always  turns  bot 
tom  up  the  minute  he  is  dead." 

"I  heard  Captain  Rhines  say,  one  time,  that  if 
a  vessel  could  be  modelled  like  a  fish,  she  would 


INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  47 

sail.  I  thought  lie  knew,  and  so  I  determined  to 
try  it." 

"  Captain  Rhines  does  know,  but  he  spoke  at 
random.  He  didn't  mean  exactly  like  a  fish,  but 
somewhat  like  them,  —  sharp,  and  with  a  true 
taper,  having  no  slack  place  to  drag  dead  water, 
but  with  proper  bearings." 

"Then  this  model,  with  proper  alterations,  would 
be  the  thing,  after  all,"  said  Charlie,  a  gleam  of 
hope  lighting  up  his  clouded  features. 

"  Sartain,  if  you  should  —  " 

"O,  don't  tell  me,  Uncle  Isaac,  don't!  It's  no 
use  for  me  to  try  to  make  a  boat  if  I  can't  study  it 
out  of  my  own  head.  I  think  I  see  what  you 
mean.  I  thank  you  very  much,  and  after  I  try  and 
see  what  I  can  do,  I  want  you  to  look  at  it,  and  see 
how  I've  made  out,  and  tell  me  how  and  where  to 
alter  it.  I  hope  you  won't  think  I  am  a  stuck-up, 
ungrateful  boy,  because  I  don't  want  you  to  tell 
me." 

"Not  by  any  means,  Charlie;  it  is  just  the  dis 
position  I  like  to  sec  in  you.  I  have  no  doubt  you 
Avill  think  it  all  out,  and  then,  my  boy,  it  will  be 
your  own  all  your  life." 

"Yes,  sir;  for,  when  I  went  to  school,  I  minded 
that  the  boys  who  were  always  running  up  to  the 


48      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

master  with  their  slates,  or  to  the  bigger  boys,  to 
be  shown  about  their  sums,  were  great  dunces, 
while  the  smart  boys  dug  them  out  themselves." 

"  I  never  went  to  school,  but  I  suppose  they  for 
got  how  to  do  them  as  fast  as  they  were  told." 

"That  was  just  the  way  of  it." 

The  next  day  there  came  a  snow-storm  and  a 
severe  gale ;  the  sea  roared  and  flung  itself  upon 
the  ramparts  of  the  harbor  as  though  it  would  force 
a  passage ;  but,  with  roaring  fires  in  the  two  fire 
places,  the  inmates  of  the  timber  house  worked  in 
their  shirt  sleeves,  and  paid  very  little  attention  to 
the  weather. 

"It  is  well  you  got  on  when  you  did,  Uncle 
Isaac,"  said  Ben ;  "  but  you  will  have  to  stay,  now 
you  are  here,  for  there  will  be  very  little  crossing 
to  the  main  land  for  the  rest  of  the  winter." 

"  But  what  if  any  of  my  folks  are  sick  ?  I  told 
Hannah  to  make  a  signal  on  the  end  of  the  pint  if 
anything  happened." 

"In  case  of  necessity,  Charlie  and  I  could  set 
you  off  in  the  schooner." 

"While  Uncle  Isaac  was  putting  up  the  mantel 
piece  in  the  front  room,  which  had  a  great  deal  of 
old-fashioned  carving  about  it,  he  set  Atkins  and 
Charlie  *at  work  upon  the  front  stairs ;  thus  Char- 


INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  49 

lie  was  so  constantly  and  agreeably  occupied  as  to 
have  but  little  leisure  to  spend  upon  boats.  But 
when  this  job  was  over,  which  had  been  most  in 
teresting  and  exciting,  he  began  to  give  shape  to 
the  ideas  that  had  been  germinating  in  his  brain  at 
intervals  during  the  day,  and  in  his  wakeful  hours 
at  night. 

He  wanted  some  plastic  material  that  would  be 
come  hard  when  dry,  with  which  to  make  his  alter 
ations,  and  determined  to  use  putty.  Leaving 
that  portion  of  his  model  which  was  to  be  under 
water  as  it  was,  he  made  it  fuller  from  that  mark, 
by  sticking  oa  putty,  and  then,  with  his  knife 
and  a  chisel,  paring  off  or  adding  to  correspond 
with  his  idea  of  proportions.  For  a  long  time  did 
he  puzzle  over  it,  striving  in  vain  to  satisfy  him 
self,  and  several  times  scraped  it  all  off  to  the  bare 
brick.  At  length  he  came  to  a  point  where  he  felt 
he  could  accomplish  no  more. 

The  next  night,  at  bed-time,  with  a  palpitating 
heart,  he  brought  it  forward  for  Uncle  Isaac's  in 
spection.  After  looking  at  it  long  and  carefully, 
he  said,  — 

"I  wish  Joe  Griffin  was  here.  I  ain't  much  of  a 
shipwright,  though  I  have  worked  sonic  in  the 
yard,  and  made  a  good  many  spars  for  small  ves- 
4 


50       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

sels;  but  he  is,  and  has  worked  in  Portsmouth  on 
mast  ships.  But  I  call  that  a  beautiful  model,  and 
think  it  shows  a  first-rate  head-piece.  She's  very 
sharp,  and  will  want  a  good  deal  of  ballast ;  so 
there  won't  be  much  room  in  her  as  far  as  depth 
is  consarned ;  but  then  she's  so  long  'twill  make 
up  for  it.  She's  a  beauty,  and  if  you  can  ever 
make  another  on  a  large  scale  like  her,  I'll  wager 
my  life  she'll  sail.  I  suppose  you'll  kind  of  expect 
me  to  find  some  fault,  else  you'll  think  I'm  stuffing 
you.  It  strikes  me,  that  in  the  run,  she  conies  out 
from  the  first  shape  a  thought  too  quick;  that  it 
would  be  better  if  the  swell  was  a  leetle  more  grad 
ual,  not  sucked  out  quite  so  much ;  but  then  I 
don't  want  you  to  alter  it  for  anything  I  say ;  but 
I'm  going  to  call  Ben  and  Robert  Yelf  up  to 
see  it." 

"  O,  don't,  Uncle  Isaac !  Father  knows  all  about 
vessels,  and  Mr.  Yelf  is  a  regular  shipwright." 

"  So  much  the  better ;  they'll  be  able  to  see  the 
merits  of  it." 

Ben  and  Yelf  made  the  same  criticism  as  Uncle 
Isaac,  upon  which  Charlie  amended  the  fault,  till 
they  expressed  themselves  satisfied. 

"That  boy,"  said  Yelf,  as  they  went  down  stairs, 
"if  he  lives,  and  gives  his  mind  to  it,  will  make  a 
first-rate  ship-builder." 


IXTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS.  51 

"Ever  since  he  has  been  with  me,"  was  the 
reply,  "  he  has  been,  at  leisure  moments,  making 
boats.  I  believe  he  has  a  fleet,  great  and  small,  as 
numerous  as  the  whole  British  navy." 

Not  the  least  industrious  personage  among  this 
busy  crew  was  Ben  Rhines,  Jr. 

From  morning  to  night,  with  a  devotion  worthy 
of  a  better  cause,  he  improved  every  moment,  doing 
mischief,  till  his  mother  was,  at  times,  almost  beside 
herself.  One  moment  she  would  be  startled  by  a 
terrific  outcry  from  the  buttery.  Ben  had  tum 
bled  down  the  buttery  stairs ;  anon  from  the  front 
entry  he  had  fallen  down  the  front  stairs;  then, 
from  the  cellar,  he  was  kicking  and  screaming 
there. 

This  enterprising  youth,  bent  upon  acquiring 
knowledge,  was  determined  to  explore  these  new 
avenues  of  information.  Twice  he  set  the  room  in 
a  blaze,  by  poking  shavings  into  the  fire,  and 
singed  his  mischievous  head  to  the  scalp,  and  had 
a  violent  attack  of  vomiting  in  consequence  of 
licking  the  oil  from  Uncle  Isaac's  oil-stone.  His 
lips  were  cut,  and  he  was  black  and  blue  with 
bruises  received  in  his  efforts.  Despite  of  all  these 
mishaps,  Ben  enjoyed  himself  hugely ;  he  had 
piles  and  piles  of  blocks,  great  long  shavings,  both 


62      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

oak  and  pine,  that  came  from  the  panels  and  the 
banisters ;  he  would  bury  the  cat  and  Sailor  all 
up  in  shavings,  and  then  clap  his  hands,  and  scream 
with  delight,  to  see  them  dig  out ;  he  would  also 
hide  from  his  mother  in  them,  and  lie  as  still  as 
though  dead ;  he  could  pick  up  plenty  of  nails  on 
the  floor  to  drive  into  his  blocks,  and  didn't  scruple 
in  the  least  to  take  them  from  the  nail-box  if  he 
got  a  chance.  The  moment  Uncle  Isaac's  back 
was  turned,  in  went  his  fingers  into  the  putty  ;  he 
carried  off  the  chalk-line,  to  fish  down  the  buttery 
stairs,  and,  when  caught,  surrendered  it  only  after 
a  most  desperate  struggle. 

"What  a  little  varmint  he  is!"  said  Uncle 
Isaac.  "If  he  don't  break  his  neck,  he'll  be  a 
smart  one." 

"  I  believe  you  can't  kill  him,"  said  Sally,  "  or  he 
would  have  been  dead  long  ago.  He's  been  into 
the  water  and  fire,  the  oxen  have  trod  on  him,  and 
a  lobster  shut  his  claws  on  his  foot ;  why  he  ain't 
dead  I  don't  see." 


THE    WEST   WIND.  53 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    WEST    WIND. 

IT  was  now  the  middle  of  March,  and  the  lower 
part  of  the  house  was  finished. 

"  Bon,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  "  we  want  to  go  off 
now.  Charlie  can  finish  these  chambers  as  well 
as  I  can." 

"I  have  not  seasoned  stuff  to  finish  but  one 
of  them  now,  and  hardly  that.  It's  too  rough 
to  go  off  in  your  canoe ;  stay  till  Saturday  after 
noon,  and  part  off  some  bedrooms  up  stairs  with 
a  rough  board  partition,  and  make  some  rough 
doors,  so  that  we  can  use  them  for  sleeping-rooms, 
and  then  Charlie  can  finish  them  next  winter,  for 
he  will  have  to  go  to  making  sugar  soon.  If 

o  o  o 

you'll  do  that  I'll  set  you  off  in  the  schooner." 

Uncle  Isaac  parted  off  the  chambers,  and  they 
now  had  plenty  of  room.  They  put  the  best  bed 
in  one  of  the  front  rooms;  the  family  bedroom 
was  off  the  kitchen,  and  there  were  bedrooms 
above. 


54       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Charlie  was  now  desirous  to  complete  his  bout, 
but  his  mother  wanted  the  flax  done  out.  He 
therefore  concluded  to  put  it  off  till  John  came  on 
to  help  him  make  sugar. 

When  Uncle  Isaac  reached  home,  John's  school 
had  been  out  a  week ;  but  the  weather  was  so 
rough  he  could  not  reach  the  island ;  and  when  he 
did  arrive,  Ben  and  Charlie  were  just  finishing  up 
the  flax.  The  boys  now  cleared  out  the  camp, 
scoured  the  kettles,  put  fresh  mortar  on  the  arch, 
hauled  wood,  and  prepared  for  sugar-making.  They 
resolved  to  tap  but  few  trees  at  first,  in  order  to 
have  more  leisure  to  work  on  their  boat.  The 
greatest  mechanical  skill  was  required  to  shape  the 
outside..  This  pertained  entirely  to  Charlie  ;  but 
the  most  laborious  portion  of  the  work  was  the 
digging  out  such  an  enormous  stick,  and  removing 
such  a  quantity  of  wood  at  a  disadvantage,  as,  after 
they  had  chopped  out  about  a  foot  of  the  surface, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  get  at,  and  the  work  must 
be  done  with  adze  and  chisel,  and  even  bored  out 
with  an  auger  at  the  ends.  They  decided  to  re 
move  a  portion  of  it  before  shaping  the  outside,  as 
the  log  would  lie  steadier.  Charlie  accordingly 
marked  out  the  sheer,  then  put  on  plumb-spots, 
and  hewed  the  sides  and  the  upper  surface  fair  and 
smooth. 


THE    WEST    WIND.  00 

He  then  lined  out  the  shape  and  breadth  of 
beam,  and  made  an  inside  Hue  to  rough-cut  by, 
and  at  leisure  times  they  chopped  out  the  inside 
with  the  axe,  one  bringing  sap  or  tending  the  ket 
tle,  while  the  other  worked  on  the  boat. 

"John,"  said  Charlie,  stopping  to  wipe  the  per 
spiration  from  his  face,  "  I'm  going  to  find  some 
easier  way  than  this  to  make  a  boat ;  it's  too  much 
like  work." 

"  There  is  no  other  way.  I've  seen  hundreds  of 
canoes  made,  and  this  is  the  way  they  always 
do." 

"  Don't  you  remember  when  we  were  clearing 
land,  that  we  would  set  our  nigger*  to  burning  off 
logs,  and  when  it  came  night,  we  would  find  that 
he  had  burned  more  logs  in  two  than  we  had  cut 
with  the  axe?" 

«  Yes." 

"  Uncle  Isaac  told  me  one  night,  that  the  In 
dians  burned  out  canoes,  and  I  am  going  to  try  it." 

"I  thought  they  always  made  them  of  bark." 

"  He  said  they  sometimes,  especially  the  Canada 
Indians,  made  them  of  a  log,  in  places  where  they 
had  a  regular  camping-ground,  and  didn't  want  to 
carry  them." 

*  Boy  Farmers,  p.  176. 


56,     THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"You'll  burn  it  all  up,  and  we  can  never  get  an 
other  such  a  log." 

"  You  see  if  I  do." 

Charlie  got  a  pail  of  water,  and  made  a  little 
mop  with  rags  on  the  end  of  a  stick,  then  got 
some  wet  clay,  and  put  all  around  the  sides  of  the 
log  where  he  didn't  wTant  the  fire  to  come.  He 
then  built  a  fire  of  oak  chips  right  in  the  middle, 
and  the  whole  length.  The  fire  burned  very  freely 
at  first,  for  the  old  log  was  full  of  pitch,  and  soon 
began  to  dry  the  clay,  and  burn  at  the  edge;  but 
Charlie  put  it  out  with  his  mop,  and  forced  it  to 
burn  in  the  middle. 

When  the  chips  had  burned  out,  Charlie  took 
the  adze,  and  removed  about  three  inches  of  coal, 
and  made  a  new  fire. 

"Not  much  hard  work  about  that,"  said  John, 
who  looked  on  with  great  curiosity. 

They  now  went  about  their  sugar,  once  in  a 
while  stepping  to  the  log  to  remove  the  coal,  re 
new  the  fire,  or  apply  water  to  prevent  its  burning 
in  the  wrong  direction. 

When  he  had  taken  as  much  wood  from  the 
inside  as  he  thought  it  prudent  to  remove  before 
shaping  the  outside,  he  began  to  prepare  for  that 
all-important  operation  ;  but  as  he  was  afraid  the 


THE    WEST    WIND.  57 

clear  March  sun  and  the  north-west  winds  would 
cause  her  to  crack,  lie  built  a  brush  roof  over  her 
before  commencing. 

Now  came  the  most  difficult  portion  of  the 
work,  as  it  must  be  done  almost  entirely  by  the 
eye,  by  looking  at  the  model  and  then  cutting; 
but  as  the  faculties  in  any  given  direction 
strengthen  by  exercise,  and  Ave  are  unconsciously 
prepared  by  previous  effort  and  application  lor 
that  which  follows,  thus  Charlie  experienced  less 
difficulty  here  than  he  had  anticipated,  and  at 
length  succeeded  in  making  it  resemble  the  model, 
in  Ben's  opinion,  as  nearly  as  one  thing  could  an 
other.  Now  their  efforts  Avere  directed  to  finish 
the  inside;  and,  having  used  the  fire  as  long  as 
they  thought  prudent,  they  resorted  to  other  tools, 
as  they  wished  so  to  dig  her  out  as  to  have  the 
utmost  room  inside,  and  to  make  her  as  light  as 
possible.  The  risk  Avas  in  striking  through  by 
some  inadvertent  blow.  Though  it  may  seem 
strange  to  those  not  versed  in  such  things,  yet 
Charlie  could  give  a  very  near  guess  at  the  thick 
ness  by  pressing  the  points  of  his  fingers  on  each 
side,  and  when  he  was  in  doubt,  he  bored  a  hole 
through  with  a  gimlet,  and  then  plugged  it  up. 
They  at  length  left  her  a  scant  inch  in  thickness, 


58      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

except  on  the  bottom  and  at  the  stern  and  bow. 
There  she  was  so  sharp  that  the  wood  for  a  long 
distance  was  cut  directly  across  the  grain. 

"  I  wish,"  said  Charlie,  "  I  had  shaped  the  out 
side  before  digging  her  out  at  all." 

"  Why  so  ?  "  said  John. 

"Because,  in  that  case,  I  could  have  left  more 
thickness  at  the  bow ;  but  I  couldn't  leave  it  out 
side  and  follow  the  model." 

In  order  to  avoid  taking  the  keel  out  of  the  log, 
and  to  have  all  the  depth  possible,  they  put  on  a 
false  keel  of  oak;  as  the  edge  was  too  thin  to  put 
on  row-locks,  they  fastened  cleats  on  the  inside, 
and  put  flat  thole-pins  in  between  them  and  the 
side,  which  looked  neat,  and  were  strong  enough 
for  so  light,  easy-going  a  craft,  that  was  intended 
for  sailing  rather  than  carrying;  they  also  put  on 
a  cut-water,  with  a  billet-head  scroll-shaped,  and 
with  mouldings  on  the  edges. 

As  it  was  evident  she  would  require  a  good  deal 
of  ballast,  to  enable  her  to  bear  sail,  they  laid  a 
platform  forward  and  aft,  raised  but  a  very  little 
from  the  bottom,  merely  enough  to  make  a  level 
to  step  or  stand  on  ;  but  amidships  they  left  it 
higher,  to  give  room  for  ballast. 

Their  intention  was,  at  some  future  time,  to  put 


THE    WEST    WIND.  59 

in  head  and  stern-boards,  or,  in  other  words,  a 
little  deck  forward  and  aft,  with  room  beneath  to 
put  lines,  luncheon,  and  powder,  when  they  went 
on  fishing  or  sailing  excursions;  but  they  were  too 
anxious  to  see  her  afloat  to  stop  for  that  now. 
They  therefore  primed  her  over  with  lead  color,  to 
keep  her  from  cracking,  and  the  very  moment  she 
was  dry,  put  her  in  the  water. 

Never  were  boys  in  a  state  of  greater  excite 
ment  than  they,  when,  upon  launching  her  into 
the  water,  with  a  hearty  shove  and  hurrah,  she 
went  clear  across  the  harbor,  and  landed  on  the 
Great  Bull.  They  got  into  the  Twilight,  and 
brought  her  back,  and  found  she  sat  as  light  as 
a  cork  upon  the  water,  on  an  even  keel,  and  was 
much  stiffer  than  they  expected  to  find  her.  She 
was  eighteen  feet  long,  and  four  feet  in  width, 
eighteen  inches  deep. 

Having  persuaded  Sally  to  get  in  and  sit  down 
on  the  bottom,  —  for  as  yet  they  had  no  seats, — 
they  rowed  her  around  the  harbor. 

"Now 'we  can  go  to  Indian  camp  ground,  or 
where  we  are  a  mind  to,"  said  Charlie. 

"  Yes,"  replied  John,  "  we  can  go  to  Boston  ; 
and  if  we  want  to  go  anywhere,  and  the  wind  is 
ahead,  we  can  beat :  how  I  do  want  to  get  sail  on 
her ! " 


60       THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

There  was  still  much  to  be  done  —  a  rudder 
and  tiller,  bowsprit,  thwarts  for  the  masts,  and 
masts'  sprits,  a  boom  and  sails  to  make.  They  did 
not,  however,  neglect  their  work;  but  now  that 
they  had  succeeded  in  their  purpose,  and  the 
agony  was  over,  though  still  very  anxious  to  finish 
and  get  her  under  sail,  they  tapped  more  trees,  and 
only  worked  on  her  in  such  intervals  as  their  work 
afforded.  In  these  intervals  Charlie  made  the  rud 
der,  and  tiller,  and  thwarts  for  the  masts. 

We  are  sorry  to  say  that  he  now  manifested 
something  like  conceit,  which,  being  a  develop 
ment  so  strange  in  him,  and  so  different  from  the 
natural  modesty  of  his  disposition,  can  only  be 
accounted  for  by  supposing  that  uniform  success 
had  somewhat  turned  his  head,  and  produced  tem 
porary  hallucination. 

From  the  time  he  made  his  own  axe  handle, 
when  he  first  came  on  the  island,  till  now,  he  had 
always  succeeded  in  whatever  he  undertook,  and 
been  pi-aised  and  petted ;  and  even  his  well-bal 
anced  faculties  and  native  modesty  were  not 
entirely  unaffected  by  such  powerful  influences. 

Ben  advised  him  to  secure  the  mast  thwarts 
with  knees,  us  is  always  done  in  boats,  to  put  a 
breast-hook  in  the  bow.  and  two  knees  in  the  stern, 


THE    WEST    WIND.  61 

to  strengthen  her,  as  she  was  dug  out  so  thin,  and 
the  wood  forward  and  aft  cut  so  much  across  the 
grain ;  but,  flushed  with  success,  Charlie  thought 
he  knew  as  much  about  boat-building  as  anybody, 
and,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  neglected  his 
father's  counsel.  He  thought  knees  would  luok 
clumsy,  and  that  he  could  fasten  the  thwarts  with 
cleats  of  oak,  and  make  them  look  neater;  and  thus 
lie  did.  They  were  now  brought  to  a  stand  for 
lack  of  material,  cloth  for  sails,  rudder-irons,  and 
spars. 

Elm  Island,  although  it  could  furnish  masts  in 
abundance  for  ships  of  the  line,  produced  none  of 
those  straight,  slim,  spruce  poles,  that  are  suitable 
for  boat  spars.  It  was  very  much  to  the  credit*  of 
the  boys,  that,  although  aching  to  see  the  boat 
under  sail,  and  well  aware  that  Ben  would  not 
hesitate  a,  moment,  if  requested,  to  let  them  leave 
their  work  and  go  after  the  necessary  articles,  they 
determined  to  postpone  the  completion  of  her  till 
the  sugar  season  was  over.  Meanwhile,  they 
painted  her,  and,  after  the  paint  was  dry,  rowed  off 
in  the  bay :  they  also  put  the  Twilight's  sail  in  her; 
and,  though  it  was  not  half  large  enough,  and  they 
were  obliged  to  steer  with  an  oar,  they  could  see 
that  she  would  come  up  to  the  wind,  and  was  an 


62       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

entirely  different  affair  from  th«  Twilight,  promis 
ing  great  things. 

They  hugged  themselves  while  witnessing  and 
admiring  her  performance,  saying  to  each  other, — 

"  Won't  she  go  through  the  water  when  she 
gets  her  own  sails,  spars,  and  a  rudder!" 

It  must  be  confessed,  Charlie  was  not  at  all  sorry 
to  see  the  flow  of  sap  diminished ;  and  no  sooner 
was  the  last  kettle  full  boiled,  than  off  they  started 
for  the  main  land. 

Immediately  on  landing,  Charlie  bent  his  steps 
towards  Uncle  Isaac's,  on  whose  land  was  a  second 
growth  of  spruce,  amongst  which  were  straight 
poles  in  abundance. 

John,  after  bolting  a  hasty  meal,  hurried  to 
Peter  Brock's  shop ;  there,  with  some  assistance 
from  Peter,  he  made  the  rudder-irons,  a  goose 
neck  for  the  main-boom,  another  for  the  heel  of 
the  bowsprit,  which  was  made  to  unship,  a  clasp 
to  confine  it  to  the  stem,  and  the  necessary 
staples. 

When  Charlie  returned  the  next  night  with  his 
spars,  they  procured  the  cloth  for  the  sails,  and 
went  back  to  the  island. 

Ben  cut  and  made  the  sails;  and,  in  order  that 
everything  might  be  in  keeping,  pointed  and 


THE    WEST    WIND.  6" 

grafted  the  ends  of  the  fore,  main,  rind  jib-sheets, 
and  also  made  a  very  neat  fisherman's  anchor;  but 
he  persisted  in  making  the  sails  much  smaller  than 
suited  their  notions. 

They  had  some  large,  flat  pieces  of  iron  that 
came  from  the  wreck  that  drove  ashore  on  the 
island  the  year  before;  these  they  put  in  the  bot 
tom  for  ballast,  and  upon  them,  in  order  to  make 
her  as  stiff  as  possible,  some  heavy  flint  stones, 
worn  smooth  by  the  surf,  which  they  had  picked 
up  on  the  Great  Bull. 

Until  this  moment  they  had  been  unable  to  de 
cide  upon  a  name,  but  now  concluded  to  call  her 
the  "West  Wind." 

They  put  the  finishing  touch  to  their  work 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and,  with  a 
moderate  south-west  wind,  made  sail,  and  stood 
out  to  sea,  close-hauled. 

All  their  hopes  were  now  more  than  realized  ; 
loud  and  repeated  were  their  expressions  of  delight 
as  they  saw  how  near  she  would  lie  to  the  wind, 
and  how  well  she  worked.  The  moment  the  helm 
was  put  down,  she  came  rapidly  up  to  the  wind, 
the  foresail  gave  one  slat,  and  she  was  about ;  then 
they  tried  her  under  foresail  alone,  and  found  she 
went  about  easily,  requiring  no  help. 


64       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"Isn't  she  splendid?"  asked  John;  "and  ain't 
you  glad  we  built  her  ? " 

"Reckon  I  am:  what  will  Fred  say  when  he 
sees  her?  and  won't  we  three  have  some  nice  times 
in  her?" 

"It  was  a  good  thing  for  us,  Charlie,  that  we 
had  Ben  to  cut  the  sails  and  tell  us  where  to  put 
the  masts." 

They  avoided  the  main  land,  as  they  did  not  wish 
to  attract  notice  till  they  were  thoroughly  used  to 
handling  her,  and  knew  her  trim ;  and,  after  sail 
ing  a  while,  hauled  down  the  jib,  kept  away,  and 
went  back  "  wing  and  wing." 

"Some  time,"  said  Charlie,  "  we'll  go  down  among 
the  canoes  on  the  fishing-ground,  and  when  the 
fishermen  are  tugging  away  at  their  oars  with  a 
head  wind,  go  spanking  by  them,  the  spray  flying 
light  in  the  wind's  eye." 

At  length,  feeling  that  they  knew  how  to  sail, 
they  determined  to  go  over  to  the  mill  and  ex 
hibit  her. 

Notwithstanding  their  efforts  to  keep  it  secret, 
the  report  of  their  proceedings  had  gone  round 
among  the  young  folks.  Some  boy  saw  John  at 
work  upon  the  ruddei'-irons  in  Peter's  shop,  though 
he  plunged  his  work  into  the  forge  trough  the  mo 
ment  he  saw  that  he  was  observed. 


THE    WEST    WIND.  65 

Little  Bob  Smullen  also  saw  Charlie  hauling 
down  the  spars  with  Isaac's  oxen,  and  when  he 
asked  Charlie  what  they  were  for,  he  told  him,  "To 
make  little  boys  ask  questions." 

The  wind  came  fresh  off  the  land,  which  suited 
their  purpose,  as  they  wished  to  sail  along  shore  on 
a  wind,  and  desired  to  display  the  perfections 
of  their  boat  to  the  greatest  advantage,  and  above 
all  show  her  superiority  to  the  canoes,  which  could 
only  go  before  the  wind,  or  a  little  quartering. 
The  wind  was  not  only  fresh,  but  blew  in  flaws; 
and  as  they  could  not  think,  upon  such  an  occasion, 
of  carrying  anything  less  than  whole  sail,  they  put 
in  additional  ballast,  and  took  a  barrel  of  sap  sugar, 
which  Fred  was  to  sell  for  them,  and  live  bushels 
of  corn,  to  be  ground  at  the  mill. 

They  were  to  spend  the  night  at  Captain 
Rhines's,  intending  in  the  morning  to  go  down  to 
Uncle  Isaac's  point  and  invite  him  to  take  a  sail 
wilh  them.  Charlie  considered  that  the  best  part 
of  the  a  flair. 

They  beat  over  in  fine  style,  fetching  far  to  the 
windward  of  the  mill,  in  order  to  have  opportunity 
to  keep  away  a  little  and  run  the  shore  down, 
intending  to  run  by  the  wharf,  and  then  tack  and 
beat  back  in  sight  of  whoever  might  be  there. 

O  O 

5 


66       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

When  about  half  a  mile  from  the  shore,  they  were 
espied  by  little  Tom  Pratt,  who  was  fishing  from, 
the  wharf.  He  had  heard  the  talk  among  the  big 
boys,  and,  rushing  into  the  mill,  he  bawled  out, 
"It's  coming!  it's  coming!  I  seed  it!  that  thing 
from  Elm  Island." 

Out  ran  Fred,  Henry  Griffin,  Sam  Hadlock,  and 
Joe  Merrithew.  In  a  few  moments  another  com 
pany  came  from  the  store  and  the  blacksmith's 
shop,  among  whom  were  Captain  Rhines,  Yelf, 
and  Flour. 

John  was  steering,  and  every  few  moments  a 
half  bucket  of  salt  water  would  strike  in  the  side 
of  his  neck  and  run  out  at  the  knees  of  his 
breeches,  while  Charlie  baled  it  out  as  fast  as 
it  came  in. 

"Only  look,  Charlie!  see  what  a  crowd  there  is 
on  the  wharf!  I  see  father  and  Flour,  and  there's 
old  Uncle  Jonathan  Smullen,  with  his  cane." 

"  I  see  Fred  and  Hen  Griffin,"  said  Charlie : 
"  when  we  get  a  little  nearer,  I  mean  to  hail  'em." 

"  Slack  the  fore  and  jib  sheets  a  little,  Charlie. 
I'm  going  to  keep  her  away  and  run  down  by  the 
wharf." 

As  they  ran  along  seven  or  eight  hundred  yards 
from  the  wharf,  Charlie,  standing  up  to  windward, 


THE    WEST    WIXD.  67 

waved  his  cap  to  Fred,  and  cheered.  It  was  in 
stantly  returned  by  the  whole  crowd. 

At  that  moment  a  hard  flaw,  striking  over  the 
high  land,  heeled  her  almost  to  upsetting ;  and  as 
she  rose  again,  she  split  in  two,  from  stern  to  stern. 
Charlie,  who  was  just  waving  his  hat  for  a  second 
cheer,  went  head  foremost  into  the  water.  One 
half  the  boat,  to  which  were  attached  the  masts, 
bowsprit,  and  rudder,  fell  over  to  leeward;  the 
cable,  which  was  fastened  into  a  thole-pin  hole, 
running  out,  anchored  that  part,  while  the  other 
half  drifted  off  before  the  wind  towards  Elm 
Island. 

John  and  Charlie  clung  to  the  half  that  was  left, 
while  the  barrel  of  sugar,  the  corn,  both  their  guns, 
powder  and  shot,  went  to  the  bottom. 

It  was  but  a  few  moments  before  Captain  Rhines, 
with  Flour  and  Fred  Williams,  came  in  a  canoe, 
and  took  them  off. 

Every  one  felt  sorry  for  the  mishap,  and  Fred 
felt  so  bad  that  he  cried. 

It  was  the  first  boat  that  had  ever  been  made 
or  owned  in  the  place,  or  even  seen  there,  except 
once  in  a  great  while,  when  a  whaleman  or  some 
large  vessel  came  in  for  water,  or  lost  their  way ; 
the  inhabitants  all  using  canoes,  as  did  also  the 
fishermen  and  coasters. 


68      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

As  the  anchor  held  one  half  the  boat,  it  furnished 
a  mark  to  tell  where  the  contents  lay;  and  while 
Fred  and  Henry  Griffin  were  towing  back  the 
other  half,  the  rest  grappled  for  and  brought  up 
the  corn,  guns,  and  sugar,  not  much  of  which  was 
dissolved. 

It  was  a  bitter  disappointment  to  Charlie  and 
John,  but  they  bore  it  manfully,  and  went  up  to 
Captain  Rhines's  to  put  on  dry  clothes  and  spend 
the  night,  Fred  walking  along  with  them,  striving 
to  administer  consolation. 

"  I  wouldn't  feel  so  bad  about  it,  Charlie,"  said 
he;  "we've  got  the  other  half;  why  couldn't  you 
fasten  them  together  again  ? " 

"  So  you  could,  Charlie,"  said  John,  "  and  she 
would  be  as  good  as  ever." 

"  But  what  would  she  look  like  ?  No,  I  never 
want  to  touch  her  again;  let  her  go;  but  I  know 
one  thing,  that  is,  if  I  live  long  enough,  I'll  build  a 
boat  that  will  sail  as  well  as  she  did,  and  not  split 
in  two  either." 

Uncle  Isaac,  hearing  of  the  shipwreck,  came  in 
to  Captain  Rhines's  in  the  evening  to  see  and 
comfort  the  boys. 

"  It's  not  altogether  the  loss  of  the  boat  makes 
me  feel  so  bad,  Uncle  Isaac,"  said  Charlie. 


THE    WEST    WIND.  69 

"I'm  sure  I  don't  see  what  else  you  have  to  feel 
bad  about." 

"  It's  because  father  told  me  to  fasten  her 
together  with  knees,  and  put  a  hook  in  the  eyes 
of  her;  but  I  thought  I  knew  so  much,  I  wouldn't 
do  it.  I  wanted  her  to  look  neat;  and  see  how  she 
looks  now!  I  never  was  above  taking  advice  be 
fore,  and  hope  I  never  shall  be  again." 

Notwithstanding  Charlie's  resolution  never  to 
touch  the  boat  again,  he  changed  his  mind  after 

o          *  o 

sleeping  upon  it. 

The  two  boys  now  reluctantly  separated,  as  it 
was  time  for  John  to  go  to  his  trade.  Fred  and 
Henry  set  Charlie  on  to  the  island,  putting  the 
masts,  sails,  &c.,  in  their  canoe,  and  towing  the  two 
halves.  Ben  never  said  to  Charlie,  "I  told  you 
so,"  but  did  all  he  could  to  cheer  him  up,  and  told 
him  he  had  made  a  splendid  boat;  that  he  watched 
them  till  they  were  half  way  over,  and  that  she 
sailed  and  worked  as  well  as  any  Vineyard  Sound 
boat  (and  they  were  called  the  fastest)  he  ever 
saw.  The  boys  put  the  pieces  of  the  boat  and  the 
spars  in  the  sugar  camp,  and  then  Henry  and  Fred 
returned. 

Charlie  seemed  very  cheerful  and  happy  while 
the  boys  were  there ;  but  when  they  were  gone,  he 


70       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

put  his  head  in  his  mother's  lap,  and  fairly  broke 
down.  Sally  was  silent  for  some  time :  at  length 
she  said,  — 

"  Charlie,  I  think  your  goose  wants  to  set.  I 
should  have  set  her  while  you  was  gone,  but  the 
gander  is  so  cross,  I  was  afraid  of  him." 

Charlie  started  up  in  an  instant.  This  was  a 
tame  goose,  that  had  mated  with  a  wild  gander 
they  had  wounded  and  caught,  and  Charlie  was 
exceedingly  anxious  to  raise  some  goslings,  and 
instantly  put  the  eggs  uuder  the  goose. 

The  wild  ganders  have  horny  excrescences  on 
the  joint  of  their  wings,  resembling  a  rooster's  spur, 
with  which  they  strike  a  very  severe  blow,  and  are 
extremely  bold  and  savage  when  the  geese  are 
sitting.  They  seize  their  antagonist  with  their 
bills,  then  strike  them  with  both  wings,  and  it 
is  no  child's  play  to  enter  into  a  contest  with 
them. 


HAPS    AND    MISHAPS.  71 


CHAPTER  V. 

HAPS    AND    MISHAPS. 

IT  is  frequently  the  case  that  trials,  which  are 
very  hard  to  bear  at  the  time,  prove,  in  the  end,  to 
be  the  source  of  great  and  permanent  benefit.  The 
sequel  will  show  that  the  wreck  of  the  West 
Wind,  which  was  so  galling  to  Charlie  and  John 
at  the  moment,  was,  in  the  result,  to  exert  a  favor 
able  influence  upon  their  whole  lives. 

The  spring  was  now  well  advanced,  and  there 
were  so  many  things  to  occupy  Charlie's  attention 
that  boat-building  was  altogether  out  of  the  ques 
tion.  Indeed,  for  a  time,  he  felt  very  little  incli 
nation  to  meddle  with  it,  and  thought  he  never 
should  again.  There  were  sea-fowl  to  shoot,  and 
Charlie  had  now  become  as  fond  of  gunning  as 
John.  The  currant  bushes  were  beginning  to 
start,  the  buds  on  the  apple,  pear,  and  cherry  trees 
in  the  garden,  whose  development  he  watched  as 
a  cat  would  a  mouse,  were  beginning  to  swell,  and 
early  peas  and  potatoes  were  to  be  planted.  The 


72       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

robins  also  returned,  and  began  to  repair  their  last 
year's  nests,  bringing  another  pair  with  them,  — 
their  progeny  of  the  previous  summer. 

Charlie  was  hoping  and  expecting  that  the  swal 
lows,  who  came  in  such  numbers  to  look  at  the 
island  and  the  barn  the  summer  before,  would  again 
make  their  appearance  ;  but,  notwithstanding  all 
these  sources  of  interest  and  occupation,  and 
though  he  felt  at  the  time  of  his  misfortune  that 
it  would  be  a  long  time,  if  ever,  before  he  should 
again  think  of  undertaking  boat-building,  it  was 
not  a  fortnight  before  he  found  his  thoughts  run 
ning  in  the  accustomed  channel,  and,  as  he  tugged 
at  the  oars,  pulling  the  Twilight  against  the 
wind)  he  could  but  think  how  much  easier  and 
pleasanter  would  have  been  the  task  of  steering 
the  West  Wind  over  the  billows ;  and  he  actually 
found  himself,  one  day,  in  the  sugar  camp,  looking 
at  the  pieces  of  the  wreck,  and  considering  how 
they  might  be  put  together ;  but  several  other 
subjects  of  absorbing  interest  now  presented 
themselves  in  rapid  succession,  which  effectually 
prevented  his  cogitations  from  taking  any  prac 
tical  shape. 

A  baby,  whose  presence  well  nigh  reconciled 
Charlie  to  the  loss  of  the  boat,  made  its  appear- 


HAPS    AND    MISHAPS.  7o 

ance.  lie  was  exceedingly  fond  of  the  little  ones, 
and  was  looking  forward  to  the  time  when  he 
could  have  the  baby  out  doors  with  him. 

Mrs.  Iladlock  had  come  over  to  stay  a  while,  and 
one  day  undertook  to  put  the  baby  in  the  cradle; 
but  little  Ben  stoutly  resisted  this  infringement  on 
his  rights,  lie  fought  and  screamed,  declaring,  as 
plainly  as  gestures  and  attempts  at  language  could, 
that  the  cradle  was  his;  that  lie  had  not  done  with 
it,  and  would  not  give  it  up.  In  this  emergency, 
Charlie  bethought  himself  of  the  willow  rods  (sal 
lies),  which  the  boys  had  helped  him  peel  the 
spring  before,  and  determined  to  make  the  baby 
a  cradle,  which  should  altogether  eclipse  that  of 
Sam  Atkins.  The  rods  being  thoroughly  dry,  he 
soaked  them  in  water,  when  they  became  tough 
and  pliant.  He  stained  part  of  them  with  the 
bright  colors  he  had  procured  in  Boston  the  year 
before,  some  red,  others  blue  and  green.  He  then 
wove  his  cradle,  putting  an  ornamental  fringe 
round  the  rim,  and  also  a  canopy  over  it.  The 
bottom  was  of  pine,  but  he  made  the  rockers  of 
mahogany  that  Joe  Griilin  had  given  him.  When 
the  willow  was  first  peeled,  it  was  white  as  snow, 
but  by  lying  had  acquired  a  yellowish  tinge,  and 
was  somewhat  soiled  in  working.  Charlie  there- 


74       THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

fore  put  it  under  an  empty  hogshead,  and  smoked 
it  with  brimstone,  which  removed  all  the  yellow- 
tinge,  and  the  soil  received  from  the  hands,  making 
it  as  white  as  at  first.  When  finished,  it  excited 
the  admiration  of  the  household,  none  of  whom, 
except  Ben,  had  ever  seen  any  willow-work  before. 

"  Well,  Charlie,"  said  Mrs.  Hadlock,  "  that  beats 
the  Indians,  out  and  out." 

"It  will  last  a  great  deal  longer  than  their 
work,"  said  he;  "but  I  don't  think  I  could  ever 
make  their  porcupine-work." 

Ben,  Jr.,  appreciated  the  new  cradle  as  highly 
as  the  rest,  instantly  clambered  in,  and  laid  claim 
to  it,  and  was  so  outrageous,  wishing  to  appro 
priate  both,  though  he  could  use  but  one  at  a 
time,  that  his  father  gave  him  a  sound  whipping. 
He  fled  to  Charlie  for  consolation,  who,  to  give 
satisfaction  all  round,  made  him  a  willow  chair, 
and  dyed  it  all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow. 

Charlie  now  prepared  to  give  a  higher  exhibition 
of  his  skill.  He  selected  some  of  the  best  willows 
of  small  size,  and  made  several  beautiful  work- 
baskets,  of  various  sizes  and  colors.  He  then  took 
some  of  the  longest  rods,  of  the  straightest  grain, 
and  with  his  knife  split  the  butt  in  four  pieces,  two 
or  three  inches  in  length ;  then  took  a  piece  of 


HAPS    AXD    MISHAPS.  75 

hard  wood  (granadilla),  made  sharp  at  one  end, 
and  with  four  scores  in  it;  inserting  the  point  in 
the  split,  he  put  the  other  end  against  his  breast, 
and  pushed  it  through  the  whole  length  of  the  rod, 
thus  dividing  it  into  four  equal  parts.  lie  then 
put  the  quarters  on  his  thigh,  and  with  his  knife 
shaved  off  the  heart-wood,  leaving  the  outside  sap 
reduced  to  a  thin,  tough  shaving,  like  cloth.  This 
lie  made  up  into  skeins,  and  kept  it  to  wind  the 
rims  and  handles  of  his  baskets.  lie  told  them 
that  a  regular  workman  had  a  piece  of  bone  or 
ivory  to  split  the  rod  with,  and  an  instrument 
much  like  a  spoke-shave  to  shave  it  to  a  ribbon, 
but  lie  made  a  piece  of  wood  and  a  knife  answer 
his  purjio.se. 

Charlie's  West  India  wood  was  constantly  com 
ing  into  use,  for  one  thing  or  another,  and  Joe 
Griftin  could  not  have  given  him  a  more  acceptable 
or  useful  present. 

lie  also  used  his  skeins  of  Avillow  for  winding 
the  legs  of  the  three  chairs  he  made,  one  for  his 
mother,  one  for  Hannah  Murch,  and  one  for  Mrs. 
Hadlock.  The  legs  were  made  of  stout  willow, 
and  wound  with  these  bands. 

ITe  presented  work-baskets  to  his  mother,  Mrs. 
Rhines,  and  her  daughters,  and  Aunt  Molly  Bra- 


T6       THE    TOTING    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

dish,  and  expressed  his  determination  to  make  some 
baskets  the  next  winter  to  send  over  to  the  mill, 
that  people  might  see  them. 

What  was  his  delight  on  going  out  one  night, 
after  supper,  to  get  some  willows  he  had  put  to 
soak  in  the  brook,  to  see  a  company  of  swallows 
he  disturbed  fly  off  in  the  direction  of  the  barn, 
with  their  bills  full  of  clay!  Following  them,  he 
saw,  with  great  joy,  some  of  them  fly  into  the 
holes  he  had  cut  in  the  barn,  while  others  deposit 
ed  their  burdens  beneath  the  eaves"  outside. 

By  that  he  knew  that  two  kinds  of  swallows 
had  come  to  take  up  their  abode,  and  were  building 
their  nests  —  barn-swallows  and  eave-swallovvs. 

lie  was  not  long  in  getting  to  the  house  with 
the  glad  tidings,  which  delighted  his  mother  as 
much  as  himself. 

"I  think,"  she  said,  " eave-swallows  are  the  pret 
tiest  things  in  the  world,  they  look  so  cunning 
sticking  their  heads  out  of  a  little  round  hole  in 
their  nest ! " 

"Yes,  mother,  and  I've  seen  them  two  stories  on 
Captain  Rhines's  barn  —  one  nest  right  over  the 
other." 

It  seemed  as  if  a  kind  Providence  had  deter 
mined  to  remunerate  Charlie  for  his  disappoint- 


HAPS    AND    MISHAPS.  77 

ment  in  respect  to  the  boat.  He  kept  his  goose, 
with  her  goslings,  in  a  large  pen  near  the  barn, 
while  the  wild  gander  was  let  out  every  day  to  go 
where  he  liked.  The  great  body  of  wild  geese 
were  now  gone ;  but  a  few  stragglers  from  broken 
flocks  still  remained,  and  were  not  considered  worth 
the  attention  of  gunners. 

A  brush  fence  ran  across  the  island  behind  the 
barn,  dividing  the  field  from  the  pasture.  Great 
was  Charlie's  surprise,  when  coming  one  day  to 
dinner,  he  saw  the  gander  in  conversation  with  a 
wild  goose  through  the  fence.  He  could  not  fly 
over  the  fence,  as  one  wing  was  mutilated,  there 
fore  was  trying  to  persuade  the  goose  to  fly  over  to 
him.  The  goose,  on  the  other  hand,  being  lonely, 

—  the  rest  of  the  flock  probably  having  been  shot, 

—  was  desirous  of  company,  but  afraid  to  venture. 
The    gander    would  walk    along    one  side    of  the 
fence,  and  the  goose  the  other,  a  little  ways,  and 
then  stop  and  talk  the  matter  over.     Charlie  ran 
and  made   a   hole   in  the  fence,  right  abreast  the 
back  barn  doors,  while  they  were  down  under  the 
hill  out  of  sight,  and  opened  the  barn  doors  that 
led   into  the  floor,  then  hid  himself  and  watched 
them.     They   continued    walking    along   till    they 
found  the  gap,   when  the   gander  .  instantly  went 


78      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP   ELM   ISLAND. 

through,  and  joined  the  goose,  making  the  most 
strenuous  efforts  to  entice  her  to  follow  him 
through  the  hole,  and  finally  succeeded;  he 
evidently  wished  to  coax  her  to  the  barn,  but 
the  goose  held  off;  she  would  venture  a  little  way, 
and  then  go  back,  her  head  erect,  turning  in  every 
direction,  and  her  eyes  flashing  like  balls  of  fire. 
It  seemed  as  if  the  gander  would  fail  in  his  efforts, 
and  she  appeared  about  to  rise  and  fly  away. 

At  this  juncture,  Charlie,  in  his  concealment, 
flung  some  corn  around  the  barn  door :  the  gander 
now  redoubled  his  efforts ;  he  would  run  ahead, 
pick  up  some  corn,  then  run  back  and  tell  her  how 
good  it  was.  The  goose,  evidently  hungry,  now 
approached  slowly,  and  began  to  pick  the  corn,  a 
train  of  it  extending  into  the  floor;  Charlie  was  so 
excited  he  could  hear  his  heart  beat.  He  now 
crawled  out  of  the  barn,  and  concealed  himself  out 
side,  and  the  goose,  following  up  the  scattered 
kernels,  entered  the  floor,  when  Charlie  slammed 
the  door  to.  He  could  hardly  believe  that  he 
had  a  veritable  wild  goose  unhurt;  he  flew  into  the 
house,  where  they  were  all  through  dinner,  and 
replied  to  his  mother's  question,  of  where  he  had 
been,  by  taking  her  and  Ben  by  the  hand  and 
dragging  them. to  the  barn,  where  they  found  the 


HAPS   AND   MISHAPS.  79 

wild  goose  on  the  collar  beam,  and  the  gander  on 
the  floor,  vainly  striving  to  entice  her  down. 
After  being  chased  from  beam  to  beam,  she  buried 
herself  in  the  hay,  when  they  caught  her  and 
clipped  her  wings. 

The  flax  being  done  out,  Sally,  with  a  good 
smart  girl  to  help  her  (Sally  Merrithew),  had  linen 
yarn  to  bleach  to  her  heart's  content.  One  fore 
noon,  about  eleven  o'clock,  Ben  and  Charlie  were 
in  the  field ;  Sally  had  spread  some  linen  yarn  on 
the  grass  to  whiten,  and  gone  in  to  get  dinner. 
All  at  once  a  terrible  outcry  arose  from  the  house; 
Sally  was  screaming,  "Ben!  Ben!  get  the  gun;" 
the  baby  was  bawling  for  dear  life,  and  Sailor 
barking  in  concert. 

The  cause  of  the  outcry  was  soon  manifest.  A 
large  fish-hawk  was  seen  sailing  along  in  the  direc 
tion  of  the  eastern  point,  with  two  skeins  of  Sally's 
yarn  in  his  claws,  screaming  with  delight  at  the 
richness  of  his  prize. 

"  Why  don't  you  fire,  Ben  ?  "  screamed  Sally. 

"  It's  no  use,"  said  Ben  ;  "  he's  out  of  range." 

"  Well,  get  the  axe  and  cut  the  tree  down  this 
minute." 

"  I  will,  mother,"  said  Charlie,  running  to  the 
wood-pile  for  the  axe. 


80       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"Stop  till  after  dinner,"  said  Ben,  who  had  not 
the  most  distant  idea  of  cutting  the  tree  down  ; 
however,  he  felt  very  sorry  for  Sally,  and  like  a 
prudent  general,  permitted  her  feelings  to  exhaust 
themselves.  "If  I've  got  to  cut  that  great  pine 
down  this  warm  day,  I  think  I  must  have  a  cup 
of  tea."  He  well  knew  the  soothing  effect  of  a  cup 
of  tea. 

When  they  were  seated  at  table,  he  said,  — 

"  What  a  nice  dinner  this  is,  Sally !  you  do  make 
the  best  bread, and  such  nice  butter!"  Not  a  word 
about  the  fish-hawk.  But  as  dinner  was  most  over, 
Ben  began  to  unfold  his  purpose.  "Sally,"  said 
he,  "do  you  love  that  little  creature  ?"  pointing  to 
the  baby. 

"  How  can  you  ask  such  a  question  ?  " 

"Haven't  you  taken  a  great  deal  of  comfort  in 
making  his  little  dresses?  and  wouldn't  you  feel  bad 
if  some  one  should  come  and  tear  down  this  house, 
break  the  furniture,  and  destroy  all  that  we've 
worked,  scrubbed,  and  contrived  so  long  to  collect 
around  us,  for  these  little  ones?  " 

"Why,  Ben,  how  you  talk!  Of  course  I  should. 
But  what  makes  you  talk  so  ?  Who's  going  to  hurt 
us  ?  " 

"  Nobody,  I  hope ;  but  suppose  somebody  had 


HAPS    AXD    MISHAPS.  81 

taken  some  little  thing  from  us,  —  an  axe,  a  shovel, 
or  a  milk  pan,  —  would  you  want  their  house  torn 
down  over  their  heads  for  it  ? " 

"  No ;  I'd  say  the  worst  is  their  own." 

"  But  you  want  me  to  cut  down  that  tree,  and 
break  that  poor  fish-hawk's  nest  to  pieces,  that  she 
has  built  stick  by  stick,  lugging  them  miles  through 
the  air  in  her  claws,  just  because  she  took  two 
skeins  of  yarn  to  line  her  nest  with,  it's  so  much 
better  than  eel-grass,  and  which  we  shall  hardly 
miss ;  besides,  she  don't  know  any  better  than  to 
take  what  she  wants,  wherever  she  can  find  it." 

At  this  appeal  Sally  cast  down  her  eyes  and 
colored  ;  at  length  she  said,  — 

"  You  are  right,  Ben,  I  know ;  but  it  was  so  pro 
voking,  after  I  had  worked  so  hard  to  spin  and 
scour  that  yarn,  the  first,  too,  that  we  have  ever 
had,  of  our  own  raising,  to  see  it  going  oif  in  the 
claws  of  a  fish-hawk  !  " 

"  Well,"  continued  Ben,  "  this  fish-hawk  came 
and  built  here  the  first  spring  we  lived  here,  and 
kind  of  put  herself  under  our  protection,  building 
her  nest  so  near  the  house,  where  we  pass  under 
it  every  day  ;  they  are  harmless  creatures,  and 
never  pull  up  corn,  like  the  crows  or  blue  jays ;  nor 
carry  off  lambs,  like  the  eagles ;  nor  pick  out  their 
6 


82       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

eyes  when  they  get  mired  or  cast,  as  the  ravens  do. 
There's  a  noble  disposition  in  a  fish-hawk :  they  are 
industrious,  work  hard  for  a  living,  and  maintain 
their  families  by  their  own  labor ;  they  won't  pick 
up  a  dead  fish,  or  eel,  or  feed  on  a  dead  horse  or 
cow,  like  an  eagle  or  carrion  crow,  but  will  have  a 
live  fish,  that  they  have  taken  fresh  from  the  sea; 
they  won't  be  beholden  to  chance,  nor  anybody,  for 
their  living,  but  earn  it,  as  every  honest  person 
should,  in  the  sweat  of  their  face.  Once  when  I 
was  a  boy,  just  for  fun,  I  put  the  eggs  of  two  fish- 
hawk's  nests  into  one.  I  was  over  here  with 
father  after  they  were  all  hatched  out,  and  there 
was  the  nest,  heaping  full,  the  little  hawks  scream 
ing,  and  the  old  ones  springing  to  it,  working  like 
good  ones  to  bring  up  such  a  family.  There  were 
some  great  lazy  eagles  sitting  in  the  tops  of  the 
pines,  and  every  once  in  the  while,  when  the 
hawks  would  get  a  good  large  flounder,  they  would 
give  chase  and  take  it  away  from  them.  O,  how 
mad  I  was !  Two  or  three  times  I  got  up  my  gun  to 
shoot ;  but  father  wouldn't  let  me,  because  he  said 
that  to  shoot  an  eagle  was  bad  luck."  As  he  con 
cluded,  he  looked  at  his  watch,  and  said,  "  We've 
been  only  an  hour  and  a  half  at  dinner ;  and 
what  of  it?"  he  continued,  putting  his  great  brawny 


HAPS   AND    MISHAPS.  83 

arras  on  the  table,  that  creaked  under  the  weight. 
"  This  is  the  comfort  of  the  farmer's  life  —  he  is  his 
own  employer.  Now,4f  I  was  a  sailor,  the  mate 
would  come  forward,  and  sing  out,  'Turn  to  there, 
men  ; '  if  I  was  a  fisherman,  and  the  fish  didn't  bite, 
there'd  be  my  expenses  going  on ;  if  I  was  a  ship 
master,  I  must  hurry  into  port,  and  then  hurry  just 
as  fast  out,  and  if  I  made  a  bad  voyage  or  a  long 
passage,  the  owners  would  look  sour;  but  how,  if  I 
am  sick,  or  happen  to  feel  lazy,  the  grain  will  grow, 
the  cows  give  milk,  and  the  sheep  make  wool,  all 
the  same." 

It  is  evident  Ben  felt  remarkably  happy  about 
this  time,  one  reason  of  which  was,  that  he  had 
determined  to  put  Joe  Griffin  in  the  Perseverance, 
who  was  going  to  fish  a  sliort  distance  from  the 
shore.  Henry  Griffin  and  Robert  Yelf  were  going 
with  him,  and  Uncle  Isaac  before  and  after  hay 
ing:  thus  Ben  was  going  to  have  a  good  time 
farming  —  the  work  he  liked  best. 

"  Sally,"  said  Mrs.  Hadlock,  "  I  wouldn't  worry 
about  the  yarn  ;  it's  nothing  to  what  old  Aunt 
Betty  Prindle  met  with." 

"  What  was  that,  mother  ?  " 

"  She  had  a  shawl  that  had  been  her  grand 
mother's;  a  beautiful  one  it  was;  came  from  foreign 


84      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

parts,  and  cost  a  sight  in  its  day ;  but  having  been 
worn  for  so  many  years,  you  know,  it  would 
naturally  get  soiled.  She •>  had  been  wanting  to 
wash  it  for  a  great  many  years,  had  often  threat 
ened  to,  and  indeed  more  than  once  set  a  time  to 
do  it;  but  when  the  time  came  her  heart  failed  her; 
even  after  the  water  was  hot,  she  was  afraid  to  put 
it  into  the  tub,  for  fear  it  would  i'ade.  I  think  she 
would  have  done  it  once,  but  her  darter  Patience, 
who  knew  it  would  fall  to  her  when  the  old  lady 
was  done  with  it,  discouraged  her.  At  last,  one 
spring,  just  about  this  time  of  year  (she  lived,  you 
know,  with  her  son  Richard),  she  determined  that, 
come  what  might,  she  would  wash  it.  One  morn 
ing  she  said  to  her  grauddarter, '  Lois  Ann  Prindle, 
do  you  go  straight  down  to  Aunt  Olive  Cobb's  and 
Peggy  Sylvester's,  over  to  Mrs.  Joe  Ransom's,  and 
the  widder  Tucker's,  give  my  compliments,  and  ask 
them  to  come  over  and  take  a  cup  of  tea  {green  tea, 
mind)  with  me .  this  afternoon.'  They  all  came ; 
and  when  tea  was  over,  she  said,  'You  know, 
neighbors,  I  am  an  old  parson,  and  can't,  in  the 
course  of  natur,  expect  to  live  many  years.  I 
do  want  to  see  this  shawl  washed  before  I'm  taken 
away;  but  our* Patience  has  always  discouraged 
me;  but  she's  gone  to  Cape  Porpoise  to  stay  a 


HAPS    AND    MISHAPS.  85 

month,  and  I'm  determined  to  have  it  in  the  tub 
before  she  comes  back  ;  that  is,  if  you  think  it  will 
do  ;  and  I  want  you  to  pass  your  judgment  on't.'  " 

"  The  old  lady  meant  to  have  plenty  of  advice," 
said  Sally. 

"  That  was  so  that  Patience  couldn't  put  all  the 
blame  on  her,  in  case  it  faded,"  replied  Ben. 

"  The  shawl  was  brought  out,"  said  Mrs.  Had- 
lock,  "  and  laid  across  their  knees,  when  judgment 
was  passed  on  it;  every  one  but  the  widow 
Tucker  thought  it  would  wash,  and  if  it  was  their 
shawl,  they  should  wash  it ;  but  she  said,  '  she 
knew  it  wouldn't  wash,  for  the  Wildridge  family, 
in  old  York,  had  jest  such  a  shawl,  and  they 
washed  it,  and  it  faded  dreadfully ;  but  there,' 
said  she,  looking  out  of  the  window,  '  comes  black 
Luce,  Flour's  wife ;  she  is  a  great  washer  and 
ironer,  and  knows  more  about  it  than  all  of  us.' 
Luce  was  called  in,  and  said,  '  if  they  put  a  beef's 
gall  in  the  water,  it  would  set  the  color,  and  it 
wouldn't  fade  a  mite.'  '  Then  I'll  wash  it,  I  de 
clare  to  man  I  will,  for  Enoch  Paine's  going  to  kill 
an  ox  this  week,  and  our  Patience  won't  be  home 
till  long  arter  that.' 

"  Aunt  Betty  procured  her  beef's  gall,  got  her 
water  hot,  and  put  it  in. 


86      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

" '  Here  it  goes,'  said  she,  '  hit  or  miss,'  dropping 
the  shawl  into  the  tub.  She  washed  and  spread  it 
out  on  the  grass  to  dry,  and  every  two  or  three 
minutes  ran  out  to  look  at  it.  At  length  it  began 
to  dry  at  the  edges,  and  she  saw  it  wasn't  going  to 
fade  one  mite.  Down  went  her  flatirons  to  the 
fire.  'Lois  Ann,  run  right  down  to  the  neighbors 
you  went  to  before,  tell  them  the  shawl  is  drying 
beautifully.  I  am  going  to  iron  it,  and  want  them 
to  come  up  and  take  tea  to-night,  and  see  it.  Tell 
Luce  to  come,  too,  and  arter  we've  done,  she  shall 
have  as  good  a  cup  of  green  tea  as  ever  she  had  in 
her  life.'" 

"She  was  a  good  old  soul,"  said  Ben;  "she 
didn't  forget  old  Luce." 

"Not  she;  but,  as  I  was  saying,  she  got  her  table 
out,  and  irons  hot ;  but  just  as  she  opened  the 
door  to  bring  in  the  shawl,  she  saw  a  fish-hawk 
rising  from  the  ground  with  it  in  his  claws.  Al 
most  beside  herself,  she  screamed  for  Richard,  who 
came  running  from  the  field ;  but  long  enough 
before  he  could  load  the  gun,  the  hawk  was  out 
of  sight  behind  a  high  hill  back  of  the  house;  and 
when  I  heard  Sally  screaming  for  Ben,  it  brought 
it  right  up." 

"  Why  couldn't  they  have  followed,  seen  where 


HAPS    AND    MISHAPS.  87 

he  went  to,  and  cut  the  tree  down?"  asked 
Charlie. 

"Because,  child,  it  was  all  thick  woods.  You 
couldn't  see,  only  right  up  in  the  air,  without 
climbing  a  tall  tree,  and  before  they  could  do  that 
he  was  out  of  sight." 

"Did  the  women  come?" 

"Yes;  but  instead  of  rejoicing  with  the  poor  old 
lady,  they  did  their  best  to  console  her.  She 
didn't  live  but  a  week  after  that.  Some  thought 
the  loss  of  the  shawl,  and  thinking  what  Patience 
would  say  when  she  came,  shortened  her  days ; 
but  I  don't.  She  was  very  old,  and  had  been  very 
feeble  all  the  winter  before." 

"Did  they  ever  find  it?" 

"  Yes ;  some  men,  who  were  clearing  land  two 
miles  off,  cut  down  a  tree,  the  next  summer,  that 
had  a  fish-hawk's  nest  on  it;  and  there  was  the 
shawl,  all  rotten  and  covered  with  the  lice  that  are 
always  on  young  fish-hawks." 

"  The  hawk  is  welcome  to  the  yarn,  mother." 

"  That's  right,  Sally  ;  that  is  spoken  like  a  child 
of  mine,  and  a  good,  thoughtful  girl.  If  the  Lord 
had  told  you,  two  years  ago,  that  he  would  give 
you  all  he  has  sent  you  in  that  time,  by  the  way 
of  the  Ark,  if  you  would  give  a  couple  of  skeins 


88      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

of  yarn  to  a  fish-hawk,  you  would  have  been  very 
glad  to  have  done  it.  These  are  all  his  creatures, 
and  he  careth  for  them,  and  feeds  them  all.  The 
robins,  in  their  nests,  open  their  little  mouths  for 
God  to  feed  them.  The  Scripture  says,  '  He 
feedeth  the  ravens,  and  not  even  a  sparrow  is 
forgotten  before  God.'" 


PAKSON   GOODHUE   AND   THE   WILD   GANDEK. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PARSON   GOODHUE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDEE. 

DURING  the  last  year  Sally  had  woven  cloth  for 
curtains  to  her  best  bed,  and  also  for  the  windows 
of  the  rooms,  when  they  should  be  finished ;  but  for 
the  last  two  or  three  weeks  she  and  Sally  Merri- 
thew  had  been  very  busily  employed  bleaching  the 
linen,  making  the  curtains,  and  scouring  the  wood 
work,  which  had  been  soiled  in  the  putting  up.  It 
was  not  the  fashion  to  paint  in  those  days  — 
everything  was  scoured. 

The  cause  of  this  extraordinary  industry  was  at 
length  revealed  by  Sally  herself,  who  said  to  Ben, 
"  ISTow  that  the  house  is  done,  I've  got  good  help, 
the  baby  is  well,  and  mother  is  here,  I  think  we 
ought  to  have  a  meeting.  I'm  afraid  we  shall  get 
to  be  just  like  the  heathen,  for  we  can't  get  to 
meeting  but  once  or  twice  in  the  winter,  and  not  a 
great  deal  in  the  summer.  I  want  Parson  Good- 
hue  to  come  on  to  the  island,  preach  a  lecture,  and 
make  us  a  real  good  visit.  He's  our  old  minister 


90       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

that  we  have  known  and  loved  ever  since  we  were 
children,  and  we  haven't  seen  him  since  we  were 
married,  except  in  the  pulpit." 

"Nothing  would  suit  me  better,  and  I  think  we'd 
better  have  it  right  off,  before  Joe  goes  away  with 
the  schooner;  then  we  can  bring  him  on  and  take 
him  back  in  her,  while  she's  sweet  and  clean." 

"Yes,  and  we  can  have  Joe  and  Henry  Griffin  to 
sing,  and  Uncle  Isaac  to  lift  the  tune.  Your  father 
will  come,  and  bring  the  girls.  They  are  first-rate 
singers ;  so  is  Fred  Williams ;  and  we  can  have 
as  good  singing  as  they  do  in  the  meeting-house 
on  Lord's  day." 

"  I'll  go  off  to-night,  and  if  he  can  come,  we'll 
have  the  meeting  next  week." 

Notwithstanding  Ben  differed  so  much  from  the 
minister  in  respect  to  temperance,  it  produced  not 
the  least  alienation  of  feeling.  Ben,  though  very 
firm  in  his  opinions,  had  not  a  particle  of  bitterness 
in  his  composition.  On  the  other  hand,  he  was 
much  attached  to  the  pastor,  who  was  a  very  de 
voted  man,  and  greatly  beloved  and  respected  by 
his  people,  although  he  thought  him  in  an  error 
respecting  that  matter,  still  his  ideas  were  in 
harmony  with  the  almost  universal  sentiments  and 
practice  of  the  age  in  which  he  lived.  He  was  a 


PARSON   GOODHUE   AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.   91 

good  man,  by  no  means  a  free  liver,  and  sought 
what  he  supposed  to  be  the  good  of  his  people 
with  all  his  heart.  Wedded  to  this  pernicious 
habit  by  early  usage,  and  the  example  of  those  he 
had  been  accustomed  to  revere  as  models  of  all 
that  was  great  and  good,  he  failed  to  perceive  its 
fatal  tendency,  although  the  proofs  were  daily  ac 
cumulating  before  his  eyes,  and  also  that  the  dis 
tinction  between  the  use  and  abuse,  which  he 
and  Captain  Rhines  strongly  insisted  upon,  was,  in 
the  great  majority  of  cases,  a  distinction  without  a 
difference. 

It  was  determined,  in  family  conclave,  that  the 
lecture  should  be  at  four  o'clock,  after  which  all 
were  to  sit  down  to  a  meat  supper,  the  meats  hav 
ing  been  roasted  beforehand,  and  served  up  cold, 
with  hot  tea  and  coffee. 

"This  will  be  the  first  time  Mr.  Goodhue  was 
ever  here,  Sally,"  said  Ben,  "and  the  first  time,  I 
expect,  in  his  life,  that  he  was  ever  invited  any 
where  to  eat  and  not  offered  spirit.  We've  got 
turkeys,  ducks,  and  chickens,  enough  of  everything. 
We'll  let  him  and  all  the  rest  know  thai  it  is  not 
for  the  sake  of  saving  that  we  don't  put  spirit  on 
the  table;  and  you  know  what  Bradish  set  out  to 
say  at  the-  husking,  if  Joe  Griffin  hadn't  knocked 
the  wind  out  of  him." 


92      THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

Seats  were  made  in  the  parlor,  kitchen,  and 
porch  for  the  audience ;  but  the  spare  room,  which 
was  most  elaborately  finished,  where  Uncle  Isaac 
had  displayed  his  utmost  skill'  in  carved  and  panel- 
work,  and  in  which  was  the  buffet,  was  carefully 
prepared  for  the  reception  of  the  minister.  There 
were  curtains  to  the  best  bed  and  windows,  which 
Sally  had  woven  and  bleached  as  white  as  snow ; 
the  bed-ticks  were  also  woven  by  her,  and  filled 
with  the  feathers  of  wild  geese  she  had  picked 
herself.  The  sheets  and  pillow-cases  were  scented 
with  orange  balm.  On  the  mantel-piece  were  some 
beautiful  shells  and  coral,  which  Ben  had  brought 
home  from  sea ;  the  secretary,  also,  which  his 
father  had  given  him,  inlaid  with  various  kinds  of 
wood,  was  in  this  room.  As  to  the  remaining  fur 
niture,  it  was  of  the  homeliest  kind,  as  Ben  had  not 
purchased  any  since  his  means  had  increased.  The 
looking-glass  was  six  inches  by  eight  in  size,  and 
the  chairs  were  bottomed  with  ash  splints.  In 
those  old  times,  instead  of  painting  or  carpeting 
floors,  they  kept  them  white  by  scouring  and  cov 
ering  with  sand.  It  was  the  custom  of  house 
wives,  on  important  occasions,  to  cover  the  floor 
with  sand,  and  then,  with  the  point  of  a  hemlock 
broom,  make  marks  in  the  sand  resembling  the 


PAESON   GOODIIUE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.   93 

backbone  of  a  herring.  Sometimes  they  deposited 
the  sand  in  little  heaps,  like  pepper  on  the  surface 
of  a  ham,  and  representing  various  figures ;  but 
Sally  Merrithew  went,  #"'  beyond  this.  She 
covered  the  floor  of  the  minister's  room  with  the 
finest  of  sand,  and  then,  with  her  fingers,  made  the 
exact  impress  of  a  little  child's  naked  foot  in  dif 
ferent  places ;  also  the  representation  of  star-fish, 
diamonds,  horses,  oxen,  and  various  other  things. 
This  was  a  vast  deal  of  work  to  bestow  upon  a 
thing  that  was  destroyed  the  moment  you  stepped 
on  it ;  but  it  looked  very  pretty  when  you  first 
opened  the  door,  and  that  was  enough  for  Sally. 
If  Parson  Goodhue  only  looked  at  it  once,  she  was 
more  than  satisfied. 

Clocks  were  not  common  then,  and  time  was 
kept  by  hour  and  minute  glasses ;  and  there  would 
not  have  been  any  other  time-keeper  on  Elm  Island 
had  not  Ben's  profession  as  a  sailor  put  him  in  the 
way  of  having  a  watch ;  but  whenever  he  took  his 
watch  with  him,  Sally  resorted  to  the  hour  glass, 
and  the  sun-mark  in  the  window. 

When  the  day  arrived,  Ben  and  Charlie  went 
over  in  the  Perseverance,  as  she  was  now  ready  for 
sea,  and  returned  with  Joe  and  his  crew,  Captain 
Khines  and  his  girls,  Uncle  Isaac,  the  Iladlocks, 


94      THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

and  others,  among  whom  was  Fred  Williams. 
The  most  important  personage  of  all  was  Parson 
Goodhue.  The  saucy  little  craft,  her  sails  limed 
and  snow-white,  her  decjp  white  as  a  holy-stone 
and  sand  could  make  them,  her  masts  scraped  and 
slushed,  with  a  little  yellow  ochre  in  the  grease, 
her  hull,  mastheads,  and  spars  gayly  painted,  and 
rigging  fresh  tarred,  seemed,  as  she  flung  the  foam 
from  her  bows  and  shot  into  the  little  harbor, 
proud  of  her  burden. 

The  parson  was  brought  ashore  from  the  vessel 
in  the  large  canoe ;  and  as  the  beach  was  wet,  Ben 
took  him  in  his  arms  and  set  him  down  on  the 
grass  ground,  without  ruffling  a  feather;  here  he 
was  met  and  welcomed  by  Sally. 

Our  young  readers  might  be  interested  if  we 
should  describe  the  dress  of  this  good  man,  whose 
arrival  had  excited  so  much  interest,  and  caused 
such  a  commotion,  on  Elm  Island ;  it  was  the 
usual  dress  of  the  ministers  of  that  day,  and  quite 
remarkable. 

A  dark-blue  broadcloth  coat  of  the  finest  mate 
rial,  with  a  broad  back,  wide  skirts,  and  a  very 
long  waist.  It  reached  below  the  knees,  the  front 
edges  on  both  sides  being  cut  to  the  segment  of  a 
circle,  from  the  end  of  the  collar  to  the  bottom  of 


PARSON   GOODHTJE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.      95 

the  skirts,  the  two  edges  just  meeting  in  the  mid 
dle  over  the  abdomen,  there  fastened,  when  fas 
tened  at  all,  with  a  single  hook  and  eye ;  the  collar 
was  quite  wide,  and  laid  over  flat  on  the  back; 
there  was  one  row  of  black  enamelled  buttons  in 
front,  about  the  size  of  an  old-fashioned  Spanish 
milled  dollar,  with  button  holes  to  correspond  to 
the  size  of  the  buttons,  but  which  were  never  used, 
as  the  coat  was  never  fastened  except  by  the  single 
hook  and  eye.  The  vest  was  of  black  kerseymere, 
reaching  some  six  inches  or  more  below  the  hips, 
with  broad  and  deep  pocket-flaps  on  each  side, 
covering  a  capacious  pocket.  It  was  buttoned 
from  the  hips,  close  to  the  throat,  with  enamelled 
buttons  as  large  as  an  English  shilling,  and  finished 
round  the  neck  with  a  narrow  collar,  three  fourths 
of  an  inch  wide.  The  lower  corners  of  the  vest 
were  rounded  off,  so  as  always  to  hang  open.  To 
complete  the  dress,  was  a  pair  of  dark-blue  small 
clothes,  buttoned  tight  around  the  body  above  the 
hips,  and  worn  without  suspenders,  as  they  had 
not  then  been  invented.  A  pair  of  heavy  black 
silk  stockings  reached  above  the  knee,  under  the 
small  clothes,  which  were  buttoned  down  close 
over  the  stockings  below  the  knee,  and  there  fas 
tened  by  silver  buckles.  On  his  feet  he  wore  a  pair 


96       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

of  round-toed  shoes  with  short  quarters,  and  fas 
tened  by  a  pair  of  large  silver  buckles  that  covered 
the  whole  of  the  instep.  On  his  head  he  wore  a 
large  full-bottomed  wig  of  silvery  whiteness,  fitting 
close  to  the  head,  the  hair  from  the  whole  head 
being  shaved  twice  a  week,  to  permit  the  wig  to 
fit  close  to  the  head.  The  back  part  of  this  wig, 
on  the  "  bottom,"  as  it  was  technically  called,  was 
very  large,  and  consisted  of  a  mass  of  curls,  of  the 
kind  that  young  ladies  now  call  frizzled ;  and  as  the 
collar  of  the  vest  was  narrow,  and  the  collar  of  the 
coat  laid  flat  on  the  back,  the  bottom  of  the  wig 
could  reach  quite  near  to  the  shoulders  without 
interfering  with  any  part  of  the  dress.  Surmount 
ing  all  was  a  large  three-cornered  cocked  hat  of 
the  finest  beaver,  but  without  any  nap ;  this,  with 
cravat  and  ample  bands  under  the  chin,  both  of 
snowy  whiteness,  formed  the  costume  of  the  vener 
able  man,  who,  on  the  beach  of  Elm  Island,  re 
ceived  the  congratulations  of  Sally  and  Mrs. 
Hadlock,  and  was  regarded  by  these  rebellious 
Yankees,  who  had  recently  flung  off  the  yoke  of 
monarchy,  with  a  veneration  as  great  as  that  of  a 
tame-bred  Briton  for  his  anointed  king. 

In  cold  weather  this  dress  was  supplemented  by 
a  long  blue  broadcloth  cloak,  with  a  small  cape, 


PAESOX    GOOmiUE    AXI)    THE    WILD    GANDER.       97 

thrown  over  the  shoulders,  but  never  fastened  in 
front.  In  this  dress,  with  no  covering  for  his  legs 
from  the  knee  to  the  foot  except  silk  tight-fitting 
stockings,  without  boots  or  buskins  (the  latter 
being  much  worn  by  all  except  seamen,  to  keep 
the  snow  out  of  the  shoes),  he  preached  sermons 
three  quarters  of  an  hour  in  length,  in  a  meeting 
house  without  lire,  and  quite  open. 

Why  the  good  man  did  not  freeze  is  to  us  a 
mystery  only  to  be  solved  by  concluding,  with 
Aunt  Molly  Bradish,  that  "'twas  all  ordered." 

At  the  meeting  they  got  along  splendidly  with 
1heir  singing,  Uncle  Isaac  lifting  the  tune  and 
taking  the  lead.  The  whole  company  thought 
they  had  never  heard  such  a  sermon  ;  that  the  good 
man  excelled  himself;  while  he  spoke  in  the  high 
est  terms  of  the  singing. 

In  respect  to  the  supper,  it  needed  not  the 
encomiums  freely  lavished  upon  it,  as  the  perform 
ances  of  the  reverend  gentleman  and  all  con 
cerned  afforded  more  substantial  evidence  than 
figures  "of  rhetoric  could  furnish  of  their  apprecia 
tion  of  its  merits. 

In  short,  it  was  a  most  pleasant  and  profitable 
season  to  all.  No  one  seemed  to  enjoy  himself 
7 


98       THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

less,  not  even  Captain  Rhines  and  the  minister,  foi 
the  lack  of  spirit. 

"One  thing  is  sartin,  Benjamin,"  said  Uncle 
Isaac,  as  they  sat  down  together  in  the  porch,  to 
enjoy  a  quiet  pipe;  "which  is,  that  people  can 
enjoy  themselves,  be  sociable  and  neighborly,  with 
out  liquor." 

"Yes,  and  feel  better  after  it's  over,"  was  the 
reply. 

Capacious  as  Ben's  house  now  was,  it  could  by 
no  means  lodge  all  the  company.  A  field  bed  was 
made  in  the  parlor  and  kitchen,  with  additional 
bed-clothes  which  Ben  had  borrowed  from  his 
mother  and  Mrs.  Hadlock. 

The  schooner's  crew  slept  on  board ;  Fred  and 
Charlie,  to  their  entire  satisfaction,  in  the  haymow, 
as  it  was  long  since  they  had  met,  and  they  had 
many  things  to  talk  over. 

They  dug  a  great  hole  in  the  hay  and  lined  it 
with  the  mainsail  of  the  West  "Wind,  got  a  meal 
bag  and  stuffed  it  with  chaff  for  a  pillow,  then 
taking  the  foresail  for  a  covering,  they  lay  spoon- 
fashion,  and  talked  themselves  to  sleep. 

"  Charlie,"  said  Fred,  "  I'll  tell  you  what  I've  been 
thinking  about :  there  are  a  good  many  people  that 
fish  in  big  canoes ;  they  catch  a  great  many  fish  in 


PARSON   GOODHUE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDEK.      99 

the  spring  and  summer,  and  even  in  the  winter, 
when  there  comes  a  spell  of  good  weather,  that 
they  dare  go  out,  because,  you  know,  they  have  to 
row  in.  Well,  they  say,  if  I  will  put  some  goods 
in  the  mill,  that  they  will  bring  their  fish  to  me, 
and  take  pay  in  goods.  Then  some  that  fish  in 
schooners,  say,  if  I  will  put  up  some  flakes,  they 
will  bring  their  fish  to  me,  and  give  me  one 
quintal  in  fifteen  for  making  them." 

"  I'd  do  it,  Fred ;  I  think  you'll  stand  in  your 
own  light  if  you  don't;  you  know  you've  got  a 
wharf  at  the  mill  to  land  fish  and  goods,  and  a 
place  in  your  mill  for  your  goods,  measures,  a  scale 
and  weights,  counter  and  shelves :  you  are  all 
fixed." 

"  Not  by  a  good  deal.  If  I  take  fish  from  the 
canoes,  I  must  have  a  fish-house  to  salt  and  keep 
them  in,  and  a  pair  of  large  scales  to  weigh  them, 
and  the  fish-house  must  be  large  enough  to  store  a 
fare  of  fish,  or  two  or  three,  till  they  are  made  and 
marketed.  Then  it  will  cost  something  to  put  up 
flakes ;  though  father  says  he'll  give  me  the  timber 
to  build  the  house  and  flakes,  and  let  me  use  hig 
oxeu  to  haul  the  timber  to  the  spot,  and  the  logs 
to  the  mill  for  the  boards.  But  then  I  can't  sell 
these  fish  I'll  fa1! ,  ard  ii:  the  mean  time  I  must 


100    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

buy  salt  and  goods,  and  I  don't  like  to  run  in  debt. 
I  have  but  little  money,  and  I  ain't  one  of  the  kind 
to  go  into  a  thing  without  making  some  kind  of 
calculation  as  to  how  I'm  coming  out." 

"  I'll  tell  you  what  you  do,  Fred  :  go  and  cut  your 
frame,  and  logs  for  boards ;  haul  your  frame  logs  to 
the  spot,  and  roll  them  up  on  skids  all  ready  to 
hew,  and  your  logs  for  boards  to  the  mill;  cut  and 
haul  your  stuff  for  flakes ;  Joe  Griffin  won't  be 
gone  more  than  a  fortnight  or  three  weeks ;  when 
he  comes  back,  I'll  get  him  and  his  crew,  father, 
and  some  more,  and  we'll  hew  your  frame  out, 
raise  it,  and  make  your  flakes  in  two  days.  I  can 
board  and  shingle  it,  and  make  the  doors  for  you, 
and  you  can  pay  me  in  goods." 

"You  are  very  kind,  Charlie  ;  it's  just  like  you; 
but  even  with  all  these  helps,  I've  not  half  money 
enough ;  three  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  won't  go 
far  in  buying  goods." 

"What  kind  of  goods  do  you  want?" 

"The  most,  of  molasses,  tea,  coffee,  and  salt. 
O,  I  forgot  the  tobacco.  Rum  I  don't  drink,  and 
won't  sell.  These  are  the  heaviest.  I  shall  want 
some  sugar,  nails,  a  few  pots  and  kettles,  medicines, 
calico,  powde'r  and  shot ;  the  rest  I  can  barter  for 
round  here.  You  know  it  takes  a  good  while,  and 


PARSOX    GOODHUE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.    101 

is  ;i  great  deal  of  expense,  to  get  goods  from  Port 
land  or  Boston  here.  You  must  be  able,  when  you 
go,  to  buv  enough  at  once  to  last  a  good  while." 

O       '  •/  O  O 

"  Xow,  Fred,  listen  to  me :  you,  John,  aud  my 
self  have  always  been  together,  like  the  fingers  on 
one  hand;  we  put  our  ventures  into  your  hands, 
and  you  did  well  for  yourself  and  us  :  now,  what 
is  to  hinder  John  and  me  from  putting  more 
goods  in  your  store  to  sell  at  half  profits.  I've  got 
four  hundred  dollars,  John  has  got  three  hundred 
dollars;  there's  seven  hundred  dollars:  we'll  put 
that  into  tea  and  coffee;  we'll  get  Captain  Hhiries 
to  go  to  Boston  or  Portland,  aud  buy  it  for  us,  put 
it  in  your  hands  to  sell  at  half  profits;  then  you 
can  have  your  own  money  to  get  other  things. 
You  can  put  a  few  goods  in,  and  go  right  to  taking 
fish  from  the  canoes,  and  by  the  time  the  large 
vessels  get  along,  we  will  get  our  goods." 

"  Charlie,  you  arc  a  friend  indeed  ;  but  will  John 
be  willing  to  do  it?  " 

'•  Yes  ;  John  Khines  will  be  willing  to  do  any 
thing  that  is  good  and  noble.  He  started  the 
matter  the  first  time;  I  mean  to  get  the  start  of 
him  now.  I'll  write  to  him  to-morrow ;  there's  a 
vessel  going  to  Portland  with  timber,  and  the 
money  is  over  to  his  father's." 


102    THE    YOUNG    SHIP- BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"  Then,"  said  Fred,  "  I'll  go  to  Portland  in  her, 
and  get  a  few  things.  I  can  salt  the  fish  in  our 
barn  till  I  get  the  fish-house  built,  and  put  any  dry 
fish  I  may  make  in  the  mill." 

"  I  don't  believe  but  I  can  coax  Joe  Griffin  to  go 
in,  and  Flour;  he's  got  money  in  Captain  Rhines's 
hands  ;  I  know  father  will." 

It  now  being  well  towards  morning,  they  went  to 
sleep.  The  next  day,  Charlie  not  only  persuaded 
Joe  Griffin,  but  Uncle  Isaac  and  his  father,  to  help 
Fred. 

"  I'll  tell  you,"  said  Captain  Rhines,  "  what  you 
had  better  do.  It's  a  poor  calculation  for  Fred  to 
take  what  he  has  got  and  go  buy  a  small  quantity 
—  he  can't  make  anything.  I'll  take  him  and 
Charlie  in  the  Perseverance,  and  we'll  go  right  to 
Boston  and  get  the  whole.  I'll  get  Mr.  Welch  to 
buy  for  me  j  he  will  do  it  better  than  I  can." 

"But  we've  not  heard  from  John,"  said  Charlie. 

"  Well,  I've  got  the  money,  and  I'll  take  it  with 
me.  We'll  run  into  Portland  and  ask  him.  I'll  get 
Flour  to  put  his  in.  I'll  put  in  the  tea  and  tobacco, 
because  I  expect  to  trade  with  Fred,  and  I  want  to 
be  sure  that  they're  good." 

The  company  now  prepared  to  depart;  but  Ben 
persuaded  Parson  Goodhue  to  stay,  telling  him 


PAESOX    GOODHTJE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.       103 

that  the  vessel  was  going  to  Boston  the  next  day, 
and  they  would  set  him  ashore  at  the  mill  wharf 
as  they  went  along. 

While  Ben  and  Charlie  were  gone  to  the  main 
land  with  their  friends,  the  minister  was  left  with 
Sally  and  Mrs.  Hadlock.  He  amused  himself  by 
taking  a  walk  over  the  island,  admiring  its  beauty, 
and  looking  at  the  crops.  Charlie  had  told  him 
he  had  a  wild  goose  and  gander,  and  also  some 
goslings,  the  progeny  of  a  tame  goose  and  the  wild 
gander.  After  returning  to  the  house  and  resting 
a  while,  he  expressed  a  strong  desire  to  see  them. 

"I  can  find  them,  Mrs.  Rhines,  if  you  will  tell 
me  in  what  direction  to  go." 

"  I  don't  think  you  had  better  go  alone,  sir,  for 
the  gander  is  in  the  pen,  and  is  quite  cross." 

"Indeed,  Mrs.  Rhines,  I  trust  you  don't  think 
I'm  afraid  of  a  goose." 

But  Sally  persisted  in  going  with  him. 

The  reverend  gentleman  was  very  much  pleased 
with  the  goslings,  who  bore  a  strong  resemblance 
to  both  parents;  but  he  was  especially  delighted 
with  the  wild  gander,  which  was  a  splendid  fellow, 
and,  from  being  well  fed,  was  large  and  plump. 

"  I  feel  that  I  must  get  over  in  the  pen,  Mrs 
Rhines;  the  gander  seems  perfectly  docile." 


104    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"Don't,  Mr.  Goodhuc,  I  beg  of  you;  he  is  very 
savage,  I  assure  you." 

He,  however,  persisted  in  getting  into  tHe  pen, 
despite  her  entreaties. 

"  Only  observe  how  affectionate  and  quiet  he 
has  become  in  captivity;  intercourse  with  human 
beings  has  doubtless  exerted  an  ameliorating  in 
fluence  upon  his  naturally  savage  nature:  you  will 
notice,  Mrs.  llhines,  that  he  does  not  open  his 
mouth  and  siss,  as  even  the  tame  ganders  will  do ; 
indeed,  I  have  always  thought  the  study  of  natural 
history  a  most  delightful  and  fascinating  recreation  : 
it  is,  in  one  sense,  a  revelation." 

As  we  have  before  observed,  suspenders  were 
not  worn  in  those  days ;  and  any  exertion  often 
caused  the  breeches  to  work  down,  and  the  waist 
coat  to  work  up,  so  as  to  render  the  linen  visible 
between  them. 

In  walking  over  the  island  and  climbing  the 
fence,  the  good  man  had  so  exerted  himself,  that  a 
large  fold  of  shirt  appeared,  and  hung  over  the 
waistband.  The  gander  came  up  to  him,  put  his 
head  very  gently  against  him,  took  hold  of  it,  and, 
while  the  attention  of  the  minister  was  directed  to 
the  goslings  and  the  tame  goose,  filled  his  mouth 
with  the  cloth ;  at  length,  having  with  the  utmost 


PAKSON    GOODI1UE    AND    THE    WILD    GANDER.       105 

gentleness  obtained  a  firm  hold,  the  guilder  sud 
denly  spread  his  great  wings  and  began  to  thrash 
the  minister  about  the  head  and  face,  with  the 
force  of  so  many  flails.  His  cocked  hat  was 
knocked  off  in  an  instant;  the  wig  followed  suit. 
Blinded  and  confused,  he  jumped  back,  falling 
prostrate  upon  his  back :  he  was  now  at  the  mercy 
of  his  antagonist,  who,  with  the  knobs  of  horn  on 
his  wings,  inflicted  blows  upon  his  face  and  bare 
scalp,  that  drew  blood  at  every  stroke,  the  wild 
goose  seconding  the  efforts  of  her  mate  by  vicious 
ly  nipping  his  legs  and  hands. 

His  screams  were  heard  by  Sally,  who,  deceived 
by  the  apparent  good  nature  of  the  gander,  had 
gone  to  the  house  to  see  to  the  baby.  She  threw 
her  shawl  over  the  gander's  wings,  and  seizing  him 
by  the  neck,  choked  him  off,  and  thrust  him  into 
tiio  pen  made  for  the  tame  goose  to  sit  in,  then  as 
sisted  the  parson  to  rise. 

He  was  indeed  in  a  sorry  plight ;  the  blood  was 
streaming  from  his  face  and  scalp,  his  clothing 
was  soiled  by  the  impurities  of  the  yard,  his  face 
covered  with  straw  and  feathers  which  the  wings 
of  the  gander  had  flung  over  him,  and  that  stuck 
in  the  blood.  The  wild  goose,  with  that  strong, 
sharp  bill,  with  which  they  will  pull  up  eel-grass 


106   THE    YOTTNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

by  the  roots,  had  torn  holes  in  the  black  silk  stock 
ings,  and  even  torn  the  skin  beneath. 

Sally  was  affected  to  tears  by  this  wholesale 
desecration  of  the  person  of  one  she  had  been 
accustomed  from  infancy  to  look  up  to  with  rev 
erence.  The  wig,  which  had  been  the  great 
object  of  her  veneration,  and  the  cocked  hat 
were  trampled  under  foot  by  the  parson  in  his  first 
attempts  to  escape.  This,  indeed,  was  no  trifling 
matter,  as  the  wig  could  only  be  dressed  and 
curled  once  a  year ;  and  for  this  it  was  necessary 
to  go  to  Boston,  and  it  took  a  professional  hair 
dresser  a  whole  day. 

The  good  man,  however,  was  much  less  dis 
turbed  than  Sally,  and  after  he  had  been  put  to 
rights  by  her  and  Sally  Menithew,  took  quite  a 
cheerful  view  of  the  matter,  affirming,  that  though 
Paul  passed  through  many  perils,  he  much  doubted 
whether  he  had  ever  been  in  peril  by  a  wild  gander. 


CHARLIE    GETS    NEW   IDEAS   IX   BOSTON.  107 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CHARLIE    GETS    NEW    IDEAS   WHILE    IN   BOSTON. 

WHEN  Ben  returned,  he  was  no  less  concerned 
than  Sally,  and  instantly  proceeded  to  administer 
consolation  in  a  more  practical  form,  by  proposing 
that  he  should  take  passage  with  his  father  and  the 
boys  to  Boston,  have  the  wig  dressed,  and  procure 
an  entire  new  suit,  and  he  would  pay  the  bills. 

But  the  good  man's  troubles  were  not  ended  yet. 
The  barbers  were  accustomed,  when  they  dressed 
wigs,  to  put  them  oji  blocks  of  wood,  made  in  the 
form  of  a  head.  It  so  happened  that,  there  being 
a  great  deal  of  work  in  the  barber's  shop,  all  the 
blocks  were  in  use.  The  barber,  for  want  of  a 
1  flock,  clapped  the  wig  on  the  head  of  his  negro 
apprentice  to  dress  it.  A  band  of  music  came 
along,  and  the  negro,  jumping  up,  ran  out  to  listen. 
He  went  by  a  carriage-maker's  shop,  when  a  man, 
who  was  at  work  painting  wheels,  struck  with  the 
ludicrous  appearance  of  a  negro  with  a  snow-white 
wig,  poured  a  whole  paper  of  lampblack  on  his 


108    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

head.  This  finished  up  the  wig.  But  Captain 
Rhines,  after  laughing  till  the  tears  ran  down  his 
cheeks,  procured  another. 

Chai'lie  spent  every  leisure  moment,  while  in 
Boston,  in  the  ship-yards  and  boat-builders'  shops. 

Mr.  Welch,  who  had  become  thoroughly  ac 
quainted  with  Charlie  while  visiting  Elm  Island, 
invited  him  and  Fred  to  come  with  Captain  Rhines 
to  dinner.  He  soon  wormed  out  of  Charlie  all  he 
had  in  view  respecting  Fred,  which  caused  him  to 
become  interested  in  the  boy,  and  he  gave  him. 
much  good,  advice  in  respect  to  business,  conclud 
ing  his  remarks  by  telling  him  he  would  buy  all 
the  fish  he  could  cure,  and  give  him  the  highest 
market  prices,  according  to  quality. 

Mr.  Welch  invited,  and  insisted  on,  Captain 
Rhines  coming  to  tea,  as  he  had  some  private 
matters  he  wished  to  talk  over  with  him. 

"My  old  friend,"  said  the  merchant,  deeply 
moved,  taking  both  the  captain's  hands  in  his  the 
moment  they  were  alone,  "my  oldest  son,  who 
bears  my  name,  —  a  name  which  I  have  ever  striven 
to  connect  with  everything  good  and  honorable, — 
is  little  better  than  a  drunkard.  He  is  both  indolent 
ai/-d  vicious.  His  conduct  has  broken  my  heart, 
and  is  fast  bringing  my  gray  hairs  with  sorrow  to 
the  grave." 


CHARLIE    GETS    NEW    IDEAS    IN    BOSTON.       109 

Captain  •  Rhine?,  not  knowing  how  to  reply,  re 
mained  silent;  but  the  pressure  of  the  hand,  and 
the  tears  that  gathered  in  his  eyes,  attested,  beyond 
the  power  of  words,  his  sympathy. 

"Tie  is,"  continued  the  parent,  "of  large  business 
capacity,  attractive  in  his  manners,  and  makes 
friends,  though  of  violent  temper  when  aroused." 

"Why  don't  you  send  him  to  sea?  Let  him  see 
the  hard  side  of  life,  come  to  misery,  and  learn  to 
submit." 

"  I  would,  but  it  would  kill  his  mother.  She 
thinks  his  temper  is  so  violent  he  would  kill  some 
one,  or  be  killed  himself." 

"Xonscnsa.!  begging  your  pardon.  He  maybe 
very  violent  with  you  or  his  mother;  but  let  the 
mate  of  a  vessel  get  afoul  of  him,  and  he  would 
knuckle  fast  enough.  I  wish  I  was  going  to  sea 
now;  I'd  engage  to  bring  him  to  his  bearings,  and 
not  hurt  him,  either." 

"His  mother  would  never  consent  to  his  going 
to  sea.  But  I'll  tell  you  what  I've  been  thinking 
of  ever  since  I  was  at  Elm  Island.  That  is  a  place 
free  from  temptation.  He  resembles  me  in  many 
things.  Like  me,  he  is  extravagantly  fond  of  gun 
ning  and  fishing,  and  has  keen  appreciation  of 
everything  beautiful  in  nature.  I  thought,  if  he 


110    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

could  spend  a  summer  in  that  beautiful  spot,  —  he 
likes  you  and  Ben ;  he  couldn't  help  liking  Charlie 
and  Sally,  —  perhaps  it  might  aid  him  to  rally,  for 
I  think  of  late  he  has  made  some  effort  in  that 
direction.  His  mother  has  often  spoken  of  it,  and 
says  she  would  not  be  afraid  to  have  him  go  to 
Elm  Island." 

"  She  need  be  under  no  apprehension  of  his  hurt 
ing  Ben,  and  Ben  certainly  won't  hurt  him." 

"It  is  not  altogether  in  respect  to  Elm  Island 
that  I  wished  to  speak.  But  while  I  was  there,  I 
became  acquainted  with  Mr.  Murch  —  Uncle  Isaac, 
as  everybody  there  calls  him.  He  is  certainly  a 
most  remarkable  man.  I  don't  kno^  what  it  is, 
but  there's  something  about  him  impresses  and  in 
fluences  one  in  spite  of  himself.  I  couldn't  help 
feeling,  while  I  was  talking  with  him,  that  I  want 
ed  him  to  have  a  good  opinion  of  me,  and  was 
vexed  with  myself  for  wishing  that  I  knew  what 
he  thought  of  me." 

"  Let  me  tell  you,  my  friend,  you  couldn't  have  a 
greater  compliment  than  Isaac's  good  opinion." 

"But  the  most  remarkable  thing  is  the  liking 
that  your  John  and  Charlie,  and,  as  far  as  I  could 
see,  every  other  boy,  seems  to  have  for  him,  and 
the  influence  he  has  over  them.  Why,  John  told 


CHARLIE    GETS   NEW   IDEAS   IN  BOSTON.      Ill 

me  —  and  Charlie  says  the  same  —  that  this  young 
Williams  was  a  bad,  mischievous  boy,  so  bad  that 
they  were  determined  not  to  play  with  him,  and 
would  have  given  him  up  had  it  not  been  for  Mr. 
March.  Now,  if  he  can  work  such  miracles,  why, 
if  my  poor  boy  was  down  there,  couldn't  he,  with 
God's  help  and  blessing,  do  something  for  him  ?  " 

"  It  is  quite  a  different  case.  These  were  boys  ; 
your  son  is  —  " 

"Twenty-two  next  March." 

"  They  were  on  the  same  level  with  Isaac.  Your 
son  is  educated,  and  Isaac  would  seem  like  an  old 
codger  to  an  educated  man." 

"  He  wouldn't  hold  to  that  opinion  long  when  he 
came  to  be  acquainted  with  him.  It  is  too  late 
now  for  this  year.  But  if  you  think  Benjamin 
would  be  willing,  —  I  should  expect  to  pay  his 
way,  of  course,  —  I  should  like  to  try  it,  if  I  could 
get  him  to  go." 

"Anything  that  I  or  Ben  can  do,  we  will  be 
glad  to.  Our  hearts  and  homes  are  open  to  you." 

"  You  are  very  kind,  and  I  will  think  more  about 
it ;  there's  time  enough.  Now,  my  dear  friend, 
permit  me  to  say  a  word  to  you.  I  am  consider 
ably  older  than  yourself.  Our  friendship  is  of  long 
standing.  It  dates  back  to  the  year  you  was  tvveu- 


112    THE    TOUXG    SIITP-DUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAXD. 

ty-one,  and  came  to  Boston  mate  of  the  first  vessel 
I  ever  owned  any  part  of.  We  ought  by  this  time 
to  know  each  other  as  well  as  we  love  each  other. 
I  feel  as  if  I  must  tell  you  there  is  but  one  thing 
you  lack.  Do,  my  old  friend,  give  your  heart  to 
God.  Let  us  be  one  in  feeling  and  sympathies 
here,  as  we  are  in  every  other  respect.  In  this 
bitter  trial  which  has  come  upon  me,  it  has  been 
my  stay  and  comfort.  If  I  could  not  have  cast  my 
burden  on  the  bosom  of  the  Savior,  I  should  have 
gone  mad.  There  are  sorrows  to  which  wealth  can 
offer  no  alleviation,  but  there  are  none  beyond  the 
aid  of  divine  grace." 

Captain  Rhines  was  touched  to  the  very  heart, 
and  most  of  all  by  the  noble  spirit  manifested  by 
his  friend,  who,  when  crushed  to  the  earth  by  indi 
vidual  grief,  turned  from  his  own  sorrows  to  seek 
his  good. 

"  I  have,  indeed,"  he  replied,  "  endeavored  to 
live  a  moral  life.  I  was  the  child  of  godly  parents, 
have  been  blessed  with  a  pious  wife,  and  am  a 
firm  believer  in  the  truths  of  the  gospel ;  but  I 
know  that  I  need  more  than  this  —  that  I  must  be 
born  again.  It  is  impossible  for  a  man  of  ordinary 
intelligence  and  capacity  to  follow  the  sea,  as  I 
have  for  more  than  thirty  years,  without  at  times 


CHARLIE    GETS    NEW    IDEAS    IN    BOSTON.       113 

feeling  deeply  his  accountability.  Oftentimes  at 
sea,  and  at  other  times  at  home,  when  Mr.  Good- 
hue,  a  good,  faithful  man,  has  talked  with  me,  I 
have  resolved  —  I  have  resolved  to  pray,  but  never 
have  done  it ;  yet  I  trust  I  shall." 

"  Life  is  uncertain.  We  may  never  meet  again. 
Kneel  down  with  me." 

They  knelt  together,  and  Mr.  Welch  pleaded 
with  his  Maker  for  the  salvation  of  his  friend  ; 
and,  as  they  parted,  Captain  Rhines  promised 
him  that  he  would  take  tho  matter  into  serious 
consideration,  and  endeavor  to  pray  for  himself. 
"The  same  energy  and  resolution,  my  dear  friend, 
that  carried  the  Ark  through  the  storms  of  the 
Gulf  Sti'eam  into  the  harbor  of  Havana,  and  at 
one  stroke  won  a.  fortune  for  yourself  and  son,  will 
carry  you  into  the  Ark  of  Safety,  and  perhaps  be 
the  salvation  of  your  whole  family." 

During  their  stay  in  Boston,  Mr.  Welch  derived 
great  pleasure  from  talking  with  Charlie.  It  was  a 
relief  to  the  heart  of  the  worn  and  weary  old  man 
to  listen  to  the  conversation  of  the  fresh-hearted 
boy,  full  of  hope  and  buoyancy.  lie  entered  into 
all  his  plans,  and  drew  from  him  his  little  secrets, 
which  helped  to  withdraw  him  from  his  own  griefs. 
Charlie  told  him  about  his  great  disappointment  by 
8 


114   THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

the  wreck  of  the  West  Wind,  and  he  didn't  know 
how  it  would  be,  but  thought  some  time  he  should 
try  to  build  a  boat  with  timbers.  Aware  of  Char 
lie's  love  of  the  soil,  and  all  connected  with  it,  he 
took  him  into  his  orchard,  where  his  gardener  was 
putting  in  grafts,  and  told  him  to  show  Charlie 
how  to  set  them,  and  also  how  to  bud.  The  first 
thing  he  said,  after  he  found  he  could  perform  the 
operation,  was,  "O,  how  glad  father  and  mother 
will  be!" 

"  I  wish  he  was  my  boy,"  was  the  thought  that 
arose  in  the  mind  of  the  merchant,  as  he  perceived 
how  love  for  his  adopted  parents  colored  every 
impulse  of  his  heart. 

"  Has  your  father  got  his  ground  ready  for  his 
orchard  ?  If  he  has,  you  might  take  some  trees 
home  with  you." 

"No,  sir,  but  he  will  have  it  ready  in  the  fall." 

"But  haven't  you  got  some  room  in  the  garden, 
where  you  could  put  a  few  trees  temporarily,  and 
then  take  them  up  ?  " 

"O,  yes,  sir." 

"  Well,  you  can  take  home  some  apple  and  pear 
trees  that  have  never  been  grafted,  and  the  scions, 
and  graft  them  yourself.  It  will  be  good  practice 
for  you;  and  then,  when  you  get  the  ground  ready, 


CHARLIE    GETS    NEW    IDEAS   IN    BOSTON.      115 

you  can  put  them  in  the  orchard.  Are  there  not 
wild  cherry  trees  and  thorn  bushes  on  the  island  ?" 

"  Yes,  sir,  plenty  of  both.  Lots  of  cherry  trees 
came  up  on  the  burns." 

"  Well,  you  can  graft  the  cherries  with  cherries, 
and  the  thorns  with  pears." 

"  How  nice  that  will  be  ! " 

"But  you  must  graft  the  thorns  close  to  the 
ground,  and  bank  the  earth  up  around  them,  that 
the  pear  may  take  root  for  itself." 

"Why  is  that,  sir?" 

"  Because  the  pear  will,  in  a  few  years,  outgrow 
the  thorn  bush,  and  will  break  down  just  as  it 
begins  to  bear.  The  pear  and  the  thorn  follow 
their  own  nature  and  habits  of  growth." 

"  That  is  very  singular,  sir." 

"  Yes,  but  so  it  is.  Look  at  that  apple  tree  just 
before  us." 

The  tree  to  which  Mr.  Welch  referred  had  been 
grafted  about  two  feet  from  the  ground  when  it 
was  little,  and  the  graft  jutted  over  the  lower  por 
tions  all  around  three  or  four  inches. 

"  These  trees,"  said  Mr.  Welch,  "  are  both  applo 
trees,  but  the  upper  one  is  a  larger  growing  variety; 
still  there  is  not  the  difference  there  is  between  a 
thorn  bush  and  a  pear  tree,  so  that  one  breaks  the 


116   THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

other  down.  It's  just  like  religion,  Charlie;  re 
ligion  don't  alter  a  person's  color  or  size,  or  give 
him  senses  ;  but  it  gives  him  different  tastes,  turns 
sour  to  sweet,  and  leads  him  to  a  better  improve 
ment  of  what  faculties  he  already  has.  Who  runs 
out  land  down  your  way,  Charlie  ?  " 

"  Squire  Eveleth,  sir ;  but  he's  getting  quite  old 
and  feeble,  and  can't  go  into  the  woods  ;  and  peo 
ple  often  come  for  father  to  run  land  and  measure 
timber." 

"  Has  your  father  got  instruments  ?  " 

"  He  has  calipers  and  a  rule  to  measure  timber  ; 
but  he  hires  Squire  Eveleth's  compass  and  chain 
when  he  runs  land." 

"Would  you  like  to  learn  surveying,  Charlie?" 

"  O,  yes,  sir,  I  like  to  learn  anything ;  but  I 
would  like  to  learn  that  uncommon  well." 

"  You  might  pick  up  a  good  deal  of  money  in 
that  way  in  a  new  country,  where  people  are 
always  buying  and  selling  land,  and  the  stump 
leave  of  timber." 

"  Yes,  sir ;  I  suppose  I  might/' 

"When  you  will  write  me  that  you  have  learned 
to  survey,  I  will  send  you  a  compass,  and  all  the 
instruments  you  want." 

"  I  thank  you  very  much  indeed,  sir ;  I  will  get 
father  to  learn  me  this  winter." 


CHABLIB    GETS    NEW    IDEAS    IN   BOSTON.      117 

"When  Charlie  left,  Mr.  Welch  gave  him  some 
books  that  treated  of  agriculture,  text-books  to 
study  surveying,  a  gauge,  bevel,  carpenter's  pocket 
rule,  and  a  case  of  instruments  to  draw  geometrical 
figures. 

"  What  a  pretty  craft  this  is  ! "  said  Mr.  Welch,  as 
he  stood  on  the  wharf  to  see  them  off;  "  she  certain 
ly  don't  look  or  smell  much  like  a  fisherman." 

"She  hasn't  been  a  fishing  since  last  fall,"  re 
plied  the  captain.  "  Ben,  you  know,  is  a  deep-water 
sailor,  and  keeps  to  his  old  notions.  Nobody,  I 
guess,  ever  caught  a  fisherman  holy-stoning  his 
decks,  and  they  don't  slush  the  masts  any  higher 
than  they  can  reach." 

"Shu's  a  beauty;  but  she  seems  small  to  go  to 
the  stormy  coast  of  Labrador,  the  Bay  of  Fundy, 
and  those  places  where  fishermen  go." 

"  Small  !  Believe  me,  I  would  sooner  take  my 
chance  for  life  on  a  lee  shore,  or  lying  to  in  a  gale 
of  wind,  in  her,  than  in  any  ship  I  was  ever  in. 
A  chebacco  boat  will  beat  square  to  windward 
where  a  ship  couldn't  hold  her  own  ;  lie  to  and 
keep  dry  till  all  is  blue ;  and  drug  them,  they  will 
live  forever.  I  served  my  apprenticeship  in  a 
chebacco  boat;  I  ought  to  know  something  about 
them." 


118    THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP    ELM   ISLAND. 

Having  a  fair  wind,  Captain  Rhines  did  not 
touch  at  Portland  on  his  way  up  to  Boston ;  but 
going  home,  he  put  in  there,  saw  John,  and  told 
him  what  disposition  he  had  made  of  his  money, 
of  which  John  highly  approved. 

The  goods  they  had  bought  and  brought  home 
were  put  into  the  mill.  Charlie  got  up  his  "  bee," 
built  the  fish-house  and  flakes,  and  Fred  soon 
covered  them  with  fish.  As  it  took  but  three  good 
days  to  make  the  fish  sufficiently  to  put  thern^ 
in  the  house,  it  soon  assumed  the  air  of  a  business 

place. 

x  < 

Fred's  stock  of  goods  was  so  much  larger  than 
before,  that  the  store  in  the  mill  was  enlarged, 
additional  shelves  put  up,  and  many  conveniences 
added ;  he  also  got  rid  of  trusting  anybody,  as  so 
large  a  portion  of  his  goods  were  sold  on  commis 
sion.  In  order  to  render  it  easier  to  keep  accounts, 
each  one  put  in  separate  articles.  Teas  and  to 
bacco  belonged  to  Captain  Rhines;  hardware,  iron, 
and  nails, to  John;  molasses, to  Charlie;  and  so  on  ; 
the  smaller  articles  Fred  purchased  himself. 

Charlie  made  Fred  a  sign-board,  and  he  took  it 
to  Wiscasset  and  had  it  lettered.  Every  day, 
often  before  sunrise,  Fred  was  to  be  seen  taking 
fish  from  the  pickle  and  putting  them  on  the  flakes, 


CHAKLIE    GETS   NEW   IDEAS   IN   BOSTON.      119 

or  salting  them  as  they  came  from  the  boats,  or 
turning  them  on  the  flakes,  every  now  and  then 
running  to  the  store  to  wait  on  some  customer. 

The  good  minister  recognized  the  hand  of 
Providence-  in  the  affliction  which  resulted  in  a 
new  suit  from  top  to  toe;  yet  it  may  well  be 
doubted  whether  he  ever  again  became  so  fas 
cinated  with  the  study  of  natural  history  as  to 
pursue  it  in  a  goose  pen,  or  to  take  for  his  subject 
a  wild  gander. 


120    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHABLIE. 

CHAELIE  lost  but  very  little  time,  after  his  ar 
rival  at  the  island,  before  he  began  to  set  out  his 
trees,  and,  having  completed  this  work,  was  ready 
to  graft  them.  He  wisely  determined  not  to  graft 
them  all,  fearing,  as  he. was  new  in  the  business, 
they  might  not  take. 

Going  to  the  brook,  he  procured  some  blue  clay, 
made  it  soft  with  water,  mixed  the  hair  and 
manure  of  cattle  with  it,  and  after  putting  in  his 
scions,  covered  the  cleft  with  the  composition  (the 
use  of  wax  was  not  known  then) ;  but  the  clay,  after 
all,  is  better,  though  it  takes  three  times  as  long  to 
put  it  on,  and  is  less  agreeable  to  handle. 

He  then  covered  the  clay  with  tow,  and  almost 
every  day  went  to  look  at  them,  to  see  if  they 
were  going  to  take,  and  then  grafted  a  large 
number  of  thorn  bushes  and  wild  cherry  trees. 

The  crops  were  now  in  the  ground,  Fred  set  up 
in  business  again,  and  the  baby  in  his  new  cradle. 


NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHAKLIE.  121 

The  swallows  had  completed  their  nests,  and  were 
twittering  from  the  eaves  of  the  barn.  A  pair  of 
robins  hud  established  themselves  at  the  full  of  the 
brook,  in  the  birch  that  tiling  its  shadow  over 
Sally's  tubs,  and  the  spout  which  Charlie  had 
made  to  cany  the  water  into  them  ;  adjoining  to 
which  was  a  little  green  plat  bordering  the  brook, 
and  fringed  with  wild  flowers  that  hud  come  to 
Elm  Island  with  the  birds ;  here  was  where  Sully 
washed  and  bleached  her  linen,  singing  meanwhile, 
as  though  washing  was  the  most  delightful  oc 
cupation  in  the  world. 

liobins  are  a  right  sociable  bird,  and  they  didn't 
seem  to  be  the  least  mile  disturbed  by  Sally's 
operations,  but,  whenever  she  sang,  replied  to  her 
with  all  their  heart.  Whenever  she  left  the  tub  to 
sprinkle  water  on  the  linen  spread  out  to  whiten, 
they  would  light  on  the  edge  ot  it  and  sing.  More 
tardy  in  their  arrival  than  the  others,  but  not  less 
welcome,  were  four  bobolinks.  Many  times  in  a 
day,  Charlie  would  come  racing  down  to  the  brook, 
and  say,  — 

"Mother,  do  listen  to  that  fellow,  singing  on  the 
top  of  that  tire-weed  ;  don't  he  go  it  as  if  it  did 
him  good  V  Come,  mother,  let's  you  and  I  sing;" 
and  they  would  strike  up,  "Johnny  has  gone  to 
the  Fair." 


122    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

When  all  these  excitements  were  over,  those 
natural  impulses  which  can  never  be  suppressed 
for  any  great  length  of  time  began  to  assert  their 
claims,  and  Charlie's  thoughts  to  run  in  their 
wonted  channel ;  his  fingers  itched  to  be  once 
more  handling  tools.  He  began  to  talk  with  his 
father,  while  they  were  hoeing  together,  in  respect 
to  the  best  kinds  *of  wood  for  boat-building,  who 
told  him  that  ships'  boats  were  generally  built  of 
oak,  both  plank  and  timbers,  because  they  had  to 
undergo  a  great  deal  of  hard  usage,  and  were  often 
beached  with  heavy  loads  in  them ;  but  that  he 
had  seen  a  great  many  boats  made  of  pine  and 
spruce  ;  that  they  were  more  buoyant,  would  carry 
more,  were  lighter  to  handle,  and  if  kept  afloat, 
and  off  the  rocks,  were  just  as  good.  We  would 
observe  here,  that  the  covering  of  a  boat  is  called 
plank,  though  it  has  only  the  thickness  of  a 
board. 

Ben  also  told  him  that  cedar  was  an  excellent 
material  to  build  boats  of;  that  in  Bermuda  he  had 
seen  vessels  of  thirty  tons  built  entirely  of  cedar ; 
that  it  was  strong  enough,  very  durable,  and  would 
not  soak  water;  that  a  boat  built  altogether  of 
cedar  would  live  forever  in  a  sea,  they  were  so 
buoyant,  just  like  an  egg-shell,  top  of  everything; 


NO   GIVE    UP   TO    CHARLIE.  123 

you  couldn't  get  any  water  into  them ;  and  that 
was  the  wood  whale  boats  were  built  of. 

The  moment  Charlie  began  to  talk  with  his 
father  on  this  subject,  the  smouldering  fire  began  to 
burn.  He  remembered  how  gloriously  the  West 
Wind  was  streaking  it  just  as  she  split  in  two; 
again  he  heard  the  music  of  the  water  at  her  bows, 
and  felt  it  rushing  along  under  her  counter,  and 
thought  how  gracefully  she  rose  on  a  sea,  as  he  put 
his  helm  down  to  shake  out  a  flaw. 

Long  before  night  he  had  decided  to  build  a 
boat  that  could  not  split  in  two,  and  also  the 
material  he  would  use.  There  were  some  large 
straight-grained  sticks  of  cedar  on  the  beach,  which 
had  been  cut  to  put  into  the  Ark,  that  would  make 
excellent  plank.  As  soon  as  he  left  off  work  at 
night,  he  hurried  through  his  chores,  then  took  his 
axe  and  went  into  the  woods. 

During  his  visits  to  Boston  and  Portland,  he  had 
spent  most  of  his  leisure  time  in  the  ship-yards  and 
boat-builders'  shops.  During  his  last  visit  he  had 
seen  three  boats  in  different  stages  of  progress.  One 
of  them  had  the  stem  and  stern-post  fastened  to  the 
keel,  and  a  couple  of  floor  timbers  put  on  ;  another 
was  completely  timbered,  and  one  streak  of  plank, 
the  one  next  to  the  top,  put  on.  TTe  asked  the 


124    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

builder  why  that  one  alone  was  put  on.  He  said 
that  was  the  binding  streak,  which  kept  the  boat 
in  shape,  and  confined  all  the  timbers,  and  that 
now  the  boat  might  be  laid  by,  and  finished  at  any 
time,  as  she  would  not  get  out  of  shape ;  that  the 
top  streak  was  left  off  in  order  that  the  sheer 
(crook)  of  the  boat  might  be  taken  out  of  that. 

Although  he  did  not  even  then  think  seriously 
of  trying  to  build  a  boat,  or  do  anything  more  than 
fasten  the  West  Wind  together  and  secure  her 
with  knees,  yet  his  mechanical  turn  led  him  to 
measure  the  depth,  length,  and  breadth  of  beam 
of  this  boat,  the  distance  apart  of  the  timbers,  and 
the  size  of  them,  and  to  notice  the  manner  in 
which  they  steamed  the  plank  to  bend  them.  He 
also  perceived  that  the  transom  of  a  boat  (square 
end  of  the  stern),  instead  of  being  made  of  timber, 
and  covered  like  that  of  a  vessel,  was  made  either 
of  one  or  two  pieces  of  plank,  and  fastened  to  the 
stern-post. 

Thus  he  knew  what  material  he  wanted.  Find 
ing  an  oak,  the  body  of  which  would  afford  mate 
rial  for  stern,  keel,  transom,  and  thwarts,  and  the 
limbs  make  knees  and  breast-hooks,  he  cut  it  down, 
and  hauled  it  to  the  beach,  intending  to  lash  the 

O 

cedar  to  it,  and  towing  them  both  to  the  mill,  have 
them  sawed  to  answer  his  purpose. 


NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHAELIE.  125 

"I  wouldn't  go  to  all  that  trouble,"  said  Ben. 
"The  first  rainy  day  that  comes,  we  will  take  them 
into  the  barn,  and  saw  them  with  the  whip-saw." 
(During  the  winter  Charlie  had  learned  to  saw 
with  it.)  lie  decided  to  build  her  in  the  barn, 
where  were  a  large  workshop  and  bench,  and  he 
could  work  there  rainy  days. 

He  built  an  arch,  with  stones  and  clay  mortar, 
near  the  barn,  set  the  small  sap  kettle  in  it,  and 
made  a  steam  box  to  steam  his  planks,  in  order  to 
bend  them.  His  next  operation  was  to  haul  the 
two  halves  of  the  West  Wind  to  the  barn,  and 
fasten  them  together.  With  pieces  of  thin  board 
lie  took  the  exact  shape  of  her  side  in  different 
places  —  in  the  middle,  a  little  forward  of  that, 
then  nearly  to  the  stem  forward,  and  nearly  to  the 
stern  aft.  These  moulds  reversed  would  answer 
equally  well  for  the  other  side. 

The  first  rainy  day,  Ben  helped  him  saw  out  his 
oak  and  cedar ;  he  stuck  the  cedar  up  to  season. 
The  next  two  days  being  too  wet  to  hoe.  he  made 
the  keel,  stem,  and  stern-post  by  that  of  the  old 
boat,  and  put  in  the  deadvvood. 

The  extreme  ends  of  a  boat  or  vessel,  being  too 
thin  to  admit  of  timbering,  are  filled  up  by  putting 
in  knees  and  timber,  which  afford  support  to  both 


126    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

the  stem  and  stern-post,  and  a  place  to  fasten  the 
upright  timbers  that  form  the  extremity  of  the  bow 
and  stern.  This  is  firmly  bolted  to  the  keel,  and 
called  the  deadwood. 

Taking  the  shape  of  the  stern,  he  by  this  cut  out 
his  transom  from  a  whole  piece  of  plank,  and  secured 
it  to  the  stern-post.  There  is  quite  a  difference 
between  the  timbering  of  a  vessel  and  a  boat. 
The  timbers,  which  form  what  is  called  a  frame  in 
ship-building,  reaching  from  the  keel  to  the  top, 
are  numerous,  and  are  named  floor  timbers,  fut- 
tocks,  top  timbers,  and  naval  timbers,  or  ground 
futtocks.  The  floor  timbers  are  placed  at  right 
angles  with  the  keel,  forming  the  flat  bottom  or 
floor  of  a  vessel,  which  gives  her  buoyancy  and 
stability  to  carry  sail,  and  the  other  timbers  are 
fastened  to  these,  the  futtocks  first,  forming  the 
curvature  of  the  side,  and  the  top  timbers  last. 
But  a  boat  has  only  two  timbers  in  a  frame. 
The  boat-builder  puts  his  floor  timbers  on  the  keel, 
and  fastens  them  there,  then  makes  all  the  rest  of 
the  frame  in  one  piece,  which  he  calls  a  naval 
timber,  which  laps  by  the  floor  timber  to  the  keel, 
is  fastened  to  it,  and  forms  the  side.  Builders  now 
make  their  timbers  out  of  plank,  which  they  steam 
and  bend  to  suit  them.  They  pursued  this  course 


NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHAKLIE.  127 

in  England,  and  some  other  parts  of  Europe,  even 
at  that  period ;  but  in  this  country  they  used  the 
natural  crooks,  branches,  and  roots  of  ti'ees,  and 
even  to  this  day,  in  Maine,  boats  are  built  in  this 
way,  though  not  by  professional  builders.  They 
use  natural  crooks  for  breast  hooks,  knees,  and  floor 
timbers,  and  sometimes  for  sharp  risers,  and  the 
V-shaped  timbers  that  form  the  ends,  but  bend  all 
the  rest.  Some  of  them  bend  knees  and  breast 
hooks  by  slitting  the  timber  to  let  one  part  crowd 
by  the  other;  thus  they  can  make  the  angle  to  suit 
them.  And  latterly,  at  East  Boston,  a  ship  has 
been  built  in  which  all  those  great  timbers  that 
make  the  frame  and  knees  of  a  vessel  were  steamed 
and  bent. 

You  must  remember,  young  readers,  that  Char 
lie  was  compelled  to  dig  everything  out  as  he  went 
along.  lie  was  very  differently  situated  from  an 
apprentice,  who  has  the  instructions  of  his  master, 
and  learns  all  the  rules  of  his  art  step  by  step. 
lie  was  alone  on  Elm  Island,  thrown  entirely  on 
his  own  resources,  and  with  only  such  information 
as  he  had  derived  from  transient  visits  to  a  boat- 
builder's  shop. 

He  now  wanted  a  mould  for  his  floor  timbers. 
As  he  had  taken  the  whole  measure  of  the  side  to 


128    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

the .  keel,  this  gave  him  the  rise  (crook)  of  the 
floor  timbers,  but  he  was  at  loss  how  long  to  make 
them.  However,  he  had  now  become  so  full  of 
boat  that  nothing  would  stop  him. 

The  Perseverance  lay  at  anchor  in  the  harbor, 
having  come  in  Tor  bait.  He  cut  out  the  ceiling  in 
two  places  to  look  at  her  floor  timbers,  and  made 
his,  as  he  thought,  of  a  proportionate  length. 

He  now  drew  two  lines  on  the  barn  floor  as  long 
as  the  keel,  and  as  far  apart  as  it  was  thick ;  then, 
placing  his  naval  timber  moulds  against  this  line, 
he  marked  out  the  shape  and  length  of  the  floor 
timbers,  and  made  moulds  for  them,  cut  the  rabbet 
on  the  keel,  and  at  the  stem  and  stern,  to  receive 
the  plank.  He  then  took  his  moulds,  and,  going  to 
the  woods,  cut  limbs  and  dug  out  roots  to  corre 
spond  to  the  shape  of  them,  and  with  broadaxe; 
saw,  and  draw-shave,  brought  them  to  the  right 
shape  and  dimensions,  which  was  ten  times  the 
work  it  would  have  been  to  get  them  out  of  plank 
sawed  at  the  mill  to  the  right  thickness,  and  bend 
them. 

Fastening  his  timbers  to  the  keel,  and  measuring 
the  width  of  the  "West  Wind,  he  brought  them  by 
cross-pawls  to  the  same  width.  He  next  took  some 
long,  narrow  strips  of  boards,  called  ribbands,  and 


NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHARLIE.  129 

fastening  one  of  them  to  the  stem,  lie  brought  it 
along  the  heads  of  the  floor  timbers,  and  nailed  it 
to  the  stern-post  and  floor  timbers.  He  put  an 
other  along  the  tops  of  the  naval  timbers,  and  one 
between ;  then  made  moulds  for  all  the  other  tim 
bers  by  shoving  them  out  against  these  ribbands, 
and  shaping  them  by  his  eye.  After  the  timbers 
were  all  in,  lie  carefully  adjusted  the  tops  by  cross- 
bands  and  shores  on  the  outside,  till  a  plumb-line, 
dropped  from  the  centre  of  one  stretched  from 
stem  to  stern,  struck  the  centre  of  the  keel;  then, 
by  measuring  from  each  side  to  this  line,  he  knew 
she  was  just  as  full  on  one  side  as  the  other.  He 
also  ascertained  that  he  could  get  the  bevel  of  the 
timber  by  the  ribbands  by  taking  off  the  wood 
wherever  they  bore  on  the  edges  of  the  timbers. 

As  the  boat  sharpens,  the  timbers  straighten,  and 
take  the  form  of  the  letter  V.  As  they  no  longer 
require  bending,  the  boat-builders  saw  them  from 
straight  plank,  and  crow-foot  (notch)  them  to  the 
keel,  and  at  the  stem  and  stern-post,  and  scarf 
them  to  the  deadwood ;  but  Charlie  procured 
crotches,  as  there  were  plenty  of  them  in  the 
woods,  where  the  branches  of  trees  forked,  pre 
senting  the  most  acute  angles. 

Working  a  narrow  plank  all  around  the  insido 
9 


130    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

for  the  thwarts  to  rest  on,  called  a  "rising,"  ho  put 
them  in,  planing  and  putting  a  bead  on  the  edges, 
and  rubbing  them  smooth  with  dog-fish  skin,  Char 
lie's  substitute  for  sand-paper,  although  he  could 
not  knee  them  till  the  boat  was  farther  advanced. 
He  now  found  that  she  was  not  widest  amidships, 
but  that  her  greatest  breadth  was  forward  of  the 
middle  timber.  Thus,  in  taking  a  fish  for  his  guide 
he  had  obtained  what  is  now  ascertained  to  be  the 
best  proportion  for  speed. 

He  felt  pretty  nice  when  he  had  accomplished 
all,  as  he  had  done  it  by  rising  as  soon  as  it  was 
light,  working  at  night  as  long  as  he  could  see,  and 
on  rainy  days.  He  thought  he  had  done  the  thing, 
and  won  the  victory. 

Looking  all  around  to  see  if  anybody  saw  him, 
he  began  to  dance  around  the  boat,  and  sing,  "  I've 
done  it !  I've  done  it !  I've  got  something  that 
won't  split  in  two  now !  What  will  Fred,  John, 
and  Uncle  Isaac  say  to  this?  Won't  I  be  proud 
showing  her  to  Uncle  Isaac  and  Joe  Griffin  !  I 
must  finish  her  up  nice,  for  their  eyes  are  sharper 
than  needles.  There's  Sam  Chase,  who  laughed 
when  the  West  Wind  split  in  two,  and  said  he  was 
glad  of  it  —  mean,  spiteful  creature !  I  guess  he'll 
laugh  t'other  side  of  his  mouth  this  time.  Now, 


NO    GIVE    UP    TO    CHAELIE.  131 

I  should  like  to  wrestle  with  somebody,  or  do 
something  or  other.  Guess  I'll  go  look  at  the  ap 
ple  trees,  and  see  if  the  scions  have  taken.  There's 
the  horn  for  supper.  Well,  I'll  go  after  supper.  It 
was  well  for  me  it  rained 'this  forenoon,  or  I  should 
not  have  accomplished  all  this." 

After  supper,  as  Charlie  sat  playing  with  the 
baby,  and  telling  his  father  of  his  success  with  the 
boat,  in  came  Ben,  Jr.,  in  high  feathers,  with  both 
hands  full  of  scions,  and  covered  with  tow,  and 
flung  them  into  his  mother's  lap,  laughing  and 
crowing  as  though  he  had  done  some  great  and 
good  thing. 

"O,  you  little  torment!"  cried  Charlie;  "if  you 
haven't  pulled  out  all  the  scions  Mr.  Welch  gave 
me ! " 

It  was  even  so.  Ben,  attracted  by  the  bunches 
of  clay  covered  with  tow,  and  the  scions  sticking 
up  through  them,  had  made  a  clean  sweep,  and 
pulled  out  or  broken  off  every  one. 

"Only  see,  mother!"  said  Charlie;  "they've 
nearly  all  started !  There's  one  got  two  leaves, 
and  there's  two  more  with  the  buds  opening! " 

"I've  a  good  mind,"  said  his  mother,  "  to  give 
him  a  good  whipping." 

Ben,  who  loved  Charlie  with  all  his  heart,  seeing 


132    THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

he  was  angry  with  him,  began  to  cry  as  if  his  heart 
would  break. 

"  Don't  cry,"  said  Charlie,  mollified  in  an  instant. 
"  I  wouldn't  whip  him,  mother.  He  didn't  know 
any  better.  I'm  glad  I  didn't  graft  all  of  them." 

To  change  his  thoughts,  he  took  his  gun  and 
Sailor,  and,  getting  into  the  Twilight,  pulled  over 
to  Griffin's  Island. 


CUAKLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW    LANGUAGE.       133 


CHAPTER  IX. 

CHARLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW   LANGUAGE. 

WHEN  Charlie  first  sat  down  to  his  oars,  he  was 
not  iu  so  happy  and  jubilant  a  frame  as  when 
leaving  the  barn,  after  having  completed  the  tim 
bering  out  of  his  boat ;  but  as  he  pulled  away  from 
the  island,  the  calm  hour,  the  beauty  of  the  sea  and 
shore,  the  glassy  surface  of  the  bay  touched  by  the 
rays  of  the  setting  sun,  gradually  tranquillized  his 
perturbed  feelings. 

"I  have  learned  to  graft,  at  any  rate,"  he  solil 
oquized,  "and  I  can  get  some  more  scions  of  Mr. 
Welch."  And  by  the  time  he  was  half  way  to  the 
island  he  had  begun  to  sing  and  talk  aloud  to 
himself. 

Charlie's  love  for  the  soil  had  by  no  means  be 
come  weakened  through  his  devotion  to  boat 
building;  and  now  that  the  distress  was  over,  and 
he  felt  that  he  could  do  it,  he  bethought  himself  of 
other  matters  that  required  looking  after. 

The   garden  must   be   seen  to  right  away,  the 


134    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

beets  and  carrots  must  be  weeded,  the  honeysuckle 
nailed  up,  the  beans  and  squashes  koed,  and  sticks 
put  to  the  peas. 

"  There,"  said  he,  "  is  that  cabbage  rose-bush, 
Mary  Rhines  gave  me,  ought  to  have  a  hoop  to 
hold  it  up.  I'll  make  one,  like  a  Turk's  head, 
out  of  willow,  and  stain  it,  and  plane  out  three 
stakes  of  oak  to  hold  it  up ;  and  I'll  stain  them;  it's 
the  last  green  dye  I've  got ;  but  I  don't  care." 

Charlie  now  had  two  objects  in  view :  one  was,  to 
shoot  a  seal,  and  the  other,  and  more  important 
one,  to  learn  to  growl  like  them.  In  summer 
evenings,  seals  are  very  fond  of  resorting  to  the 
ledges  at  half  tide,  and  to  the  sand  "spits,  where 
they  lie  and  suckle  their  young,  where  they  feel  safe, 
and  much  at  home,  growl,  and  are  very  sociable. 
The  many  ledges  lying  off  Griffin's  Island  were 
frequented  by  seals ;  but  one  in  particular,  called 
the  Flatiron  from  its  shape,  was  a  favorite  re 
sort,  because,  while  the  others  were  within  gun 
shot  of  the  island,  this  was  far  beyond  the  range  of 
any  ordinary  gun.  Charlie,  knowing  this,  had 
brought,  in  addition  to  his  own  gun,  Ben's  great 
wall  piece,  the  barrel  of  which  was  seven  feet  in 
length,  and  the  stock  looked  as  if  it  had  been 
hewed  out  with  an  axe.  Uncle  Isaac  had  often 


CHARLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW    LANGUAGE.       135 

threatened  to  make  a  new  stock  for  it.  Notwith 
standing  its  bud  looks,  it  was  a  choice  gun  for 
long  distances,  and  threw  the  charge  where  it  was 
pointed. 

This  ledge  also  possessed  another  attraction  for 
the  seals,  as  it  was  flat,  smooth,  covered  with  a 
soft  mat  of  sea-weed,  and  at  the  edges  slanted  off 
into  deep  water;  thus  they  could  put  their  watch 
man  on  a  little  ridge  that  rose  up  in  the  middle 
very  much  like  the  handle  of  a  ilatiron,  and  when 
he  gave  the  alarm,  the  whole  band  could,  in  an 
instant,  souse  into  the  water. 

Charlie  knew  that  Uncle  Isaac  and  Joe  Griffin 
could  imitate  the  noise  of  seals  so  exactly  as  to 
draw  them  on  to  the  ledge,  they  supposing  it  to 
be  another  seal ;  and  that  Uncle  Isaac  had  a  seal 
stuffed,  which  he  would  set  on  a  ledge,  as  though 
alive,  and  then,  concealing  himself,  make  a  noise 
like  them.  The  seals,  hearing  the  noise,  and  seeing 
the  stuffed  one,  would  endeavor  to  crawl  up,  and 
thus  afford  a  shot.  Charlie  was  an  excellent  singer, 
and  a  pretty  good  mimic,  and  honed  by  practice  to 
obtain  sufficient  accuracy  to  deceive  a  seal ;  and 
he  wanted  to  kill  one  to  stuff,  that  he  might  try 
Uncle  Isaac's  plan. 

Landing,  and  crossing  the  island,  he  approached 


136    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAXD. 

the  bank  abreast  the  ledge.  Near  this  bank  was 
a  ridge  of  shelly  rock,  rising,  about  two  feet  from 
the  grass  ground,  to  a  sharp  edge,  from  which  the 
land  sloped  gradually  towards  the  centre  of  the 
island  — just  the  place  to  lie  and  rest  the  big  gun 
over  the  edge  of  the  rock. 

Although  Charlie  had  no  objection  to  shooting  a 
seal,  he  was  much  more  anxious  to  practise  growl 
ing.  It  was  little  after  high  water :  he  crawled  up 
behind  the  ledge,  with  the  boat's  sail  over  him, 
to  keep  off  the  dew,  and  lay  down  in  the  bright 
moonlight  to  watch  the  seals,  who  were  swimming 
around  the  top  of  the  rock,  that  was  just  beginning 
to  get  bare,  preparing  to  go  on  to  it.  With  the 
patience  of  a  sportsman  Charlie  waited;  gradually 
the  rock  was  left  above  the  water.  At  length  one 
seal  ventured  to  land ;  then  others  followed ;  and 
soon  they  began  to  converse.  Charlie  had  practised 
a  good  deal,  at  home,  by  striving  to  imitate  them 
from  recollection,  and  now  had  come  over  here  that 
he  might  hear  them  more,  and  fix  the  sounds  well  ia 
his  memory :  so  he  lay  and  listened  a  long  time  to 
the  sounds,  imitating  them  in  a  low  tone,  repeating 
them  again  and  again.  At  length,  flattering  himself 
he  had  caught  the  tone  quite  perfectly,  he  concluded 
to  try  it  on  the  seals ;  but  the  moment  his  voice  rose 


CHARLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW    LANGUAGE.       137 

on  the  air,  every  one  of  them  went  into  the  water. 
Charlie  was  quite  mortified  at  this ;  but  it  was 
evident  they  were  not  much  alarmed,  for  they  soon 
came  back,  and  resumed  their  growling.  After 
listening  again  for  some  time,  and  practising  as 
before,  he  made  another  effort  aloud,  when,  to  his 
great  joy,  they  remained;  another  attempt  was 
equally  successful ;  but  the  third  time  some  false 
note  startled  the  wary  creatures,  and  off  they  slid 
from  the  ledge ;  but  after  swimming  around  a 
while  they  returned  again. 

Charlie,  quite  well  satisfied  now  with  his  pro 
ficiency  in  the  language,  determined  to  shoot  one 
of  his  instructors.  He  took  aim  at  a  big  fellow 
who  sat  upon  the  highest  part  of  the  ledge  and 
seemed  to  act  as  watchman,  and  fired  the  old  gun. 
It  was  heavily  loaded  with  buckshot,  and  the  seal 
never  moved  after  receiving  the  charge. 

o  o 

"  So  much  for  the  big  gun,"  said  Charlie. 

On  his  way  home  he  concluded  not  to  meddle 
with  the  boat  again  till  some  rainy  day,  or  till  he 
had  put  the  garden  and  flowers  to  rights. 

After  skinning  his  seal,  cutting  the  skin  as  little 
as  possible,  he  stuffed  it  with  salt,  intending  to  make 
a  decoy  of  it.  He  rather  thought  lie  should  get 
into  it,  as  the  Indian  got  into  the  hog's  skin  to 


138    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

kill  poor  Sally  Dinsrnore,  thinking  he  could  growl 
a  great  deal  better  in  a  seal-skin. 

The  mornings  now  were  most  beautiful ;  it  was 
generally  calm  till  ten  or  eleven  o'clock;  and  a 
busier  or  more  attractive  spot  than  Elm  Island 
presented  it  would  be  difficult  to  find.  As  the 
gray  light  of  morning  began  to  break,  you  would 
hear  far  off  in  the  woods  a  single,  sudden,  harsh  cry, 
breaking  with  explosive  force  from  the  mouth  of 
au  old  heron,  instantly  followed  by  others ;  the 
squawks  would  add  their  contribution;  then  would 
follow  the  sharp  screams  of  the  fish-hawk,  mingling 
with  the  crowing  of  cocks,  —  of  which  there  were 
no  less  than  three  in  the  barn,  —  the  clear  notes  of 
the  robin,  and  the  twittering  of  many  swallows  from 
the  eaves,  that,  with  their  heads  sticking  out  of 
little  round  holes  in  their  nests,  were  bidding  their 
neighbors  good  morning. 

As  the  sun  came  up,  all  were  stirred  to  new 
emulation ;  the  bobolink,  shaking  the  dew  from  his 
wings,  poured  forth  his  wild  medley  of  notes;  and 
faint  in  the  distance  was  heard  the  bleating  of 
sheep  from  Griffin's  Island. 

As  Charlie,  mounted  on  a  ladder,  trained  the 
honeysuckle  over  the  front  door  and  windows,  he 
often  paused  to  listen,  and  sitting  upon  the  round 


CHARLIE    LEARNING    A   NEW    LANGUAGE.       139 

of  the  luckier,  inhaled  the  fragrance  of  the  morning 
air,  or  gazed  from  his  elevation  upon  the  beautiful 
scene  before  him  —  the  noble  b;iy,  smooth  as  a 
mirror,  touched  by  the  full  rays  of  the  rising  sun ; 
the  gray  cliffs  of  the  islands,  frowning  above,  with 
their  majestic  coronal  of  forests;  and  the  green 
nooks,  here  and  there  upon  them,  glittering  with 
dew. 

"  I  wish  I  was  a  bobolink  —  I  do,"  said  he,  as  he 
listened  to  one,  who,  more  ambitious  than  his  mates, 
was  striving  to  lead  the  choir,  from  the  summit  of 
a  mullein  stalk,  with  mouth  wide  open,  wings  and 
every  feather  on  him  in  motion. 

The  old  bush  Mrs.  Iladlock  had  given  hei 
daughter,  sacred  to  the  associations  of  childhood, 
was  now  bending  beneath  its  weight  of  flowers, 
while  close  beside  it  blushed  the  cabbage  roses, 
hanging  in  rich  clusters  over  the  edge  of  the 
ornamental  hoop  Charlie  had  put  around  the 
bush. 

To  his  great  joy,  Charlie  found,  on  inspection, 
that  his  grafts  were  not  all  destroyed.  With  the 
best  intention  in  the  world  to  do  mischief,  Ben,  Jr., 
had  not  accomplished  his  intent.  The  clay  had 
baked  so  hard  around  the  scions,  that  he  had 
broken  part  of  them  off,  leaving  a  couple  of  buds; 


140    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

for  Charlie  had  put  one  bud  into  the  cleft  of  each 
stock,  and  they  were  coming  through  the  clay. 

"  I  don't  care  a  cent's  worth,"  cried  he,  when  he 
saw  this ;  "  in  two  years  I  can  get  scions  from 
these." 

He  found  that  the  pears  and  cherries  that  had 
escaped  Ben's  notice  had  most  of  them  taken,  and 
were  starting  finely. 

You  seldom  find  boys  who  have  more  to  occupy 
their  attention  and  take  up  their  time  than  Charlie 
had.  He  had  wintered  eight  ducks  and  a  drake, 
and  young  ducks  were  everywhere,  for  he  had  kept 
the  old  ducks  laying,  and  set  the  eggs  under  hens. 
He  had  fifty  hens  (for  there  was  corn  enough  on 
Elm  Island  now),  and  troops  of  chickens.  He  also 
had  four  mongrel  geese,  the  offspring  of  the  wild 
gander  and  the  tame  goose,  and  six  rabbits.  He 
was  raising  two  calves,  intending  to  have  a  yoke  of 
oxen,  and  there  were  two  cosset  lambs;  one  of  the 
mother  sheep  had  got  cut  off  by  the  tide  under  the 
rocks  on  Griffin's  Island,  and  drowned ;  the  other 
was  mired,  and  the  eagles  had  picked  out  her  eyes. 
He  had  taught  these  cossets  to  drink  cow's  milk. 
Ben,  Jr.,  who  was  as  bright  and  smart  as  he  was 
mischievous,  attended  to  feeding  them,  and  they 
would  follow  him  all  around  the  premises ;  but  even 


CHARLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW    LANGUAGE.       141 

this  was  not  all.  Uncle  Isaac,  in  building  fence 
that  spring,  had  found  a  partridge  nest,  with  fifteen 
eggs ;  as  the  parent  had  not  begun  to  sit  on  them, 
he  brought  them  over  to  Charlie,  well  knowing  his 
fondness  for  pets. 

"  If  you  can  tame  them  when  they  hatch,"  said 
he,  "you  will  do  what  was  never  done  before." 

The  day  before,  little  Ben  had  come  upon  a  hen 
that  had  stolen  her  nest  in  the  edge  of  the  woods, 
and  was  just  beginning  to  sit.  He  came  into  the 
house  full  of  the  matter  to  his  mother,  who,  taking 
the  hen  from  the  nest,  put  her  under  a  tub  to  break 
her  from  wanting  to  sit.  As  there  was  no  other 
hen  that  wanted  to  sit,  Charlie  put  the  partridge 
eggs  in  the  same  nest,  and  put  the  hen  on  them,  as 
he  was  afraid  she  would  leave  them  if  he  put  them 
in  a  new  place:  he  intended  to  keep  watch  of  her, 
and  as  soon  as  the  eggs  were  pipped,  to  take  the 
mother  and  young  into  the  barn. 

Whenever  Charlie  had  a  little  leisure  amid  his 
numerous  avocations,  he  enjoyed  a  great  deal  in 
watching  the  proceedings  of  his  large  family,  com 
monly  as  they  retired  for  the  night,  as  he  was 
generally  about  the  barn,  and  more  at  leisure  then. 

Although  Charlie  is  now  verging  on  early  man 
hood,  resolute  to  grapple  with  danger,  and  yielding 


142    THE    TOTING    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

to  no  difficulties,  yet  he  was  peculiarly  boyish  in 
his  tastes ;  this  tendency,  in  part  native,  had  been 
fostered  by  his  isolated  position,  which  compelled 
him  to  find  enjoyment  in  different  sources  from 
boys  in  general ;  his  pets  were  his  companions.  It 
is  a  great  mistake  to  suppose  that  roughness  is  an 
attribute  of  courage.  It  was  Nelson  who  said,  as 
he  was  dying,  to  his  comrade  through  whole  days 
of  bloodshed,  "  Kiss  me,  Hardy." 

Charlie  had  more  moral  and  physical  courage 
than  Pete  Clash,  though  he  had  never  lost  his 
childish  innocence.  He  loved  to  see  the  hens 
calling  their  chickens  together  for  the  night,  and 
collecting  them  under  their  wings,  to  see  their 
little  heads  sticking  out  from  under  their  mothers' 
breasts,  and  chirping,  as  though  saying,  "Mother, 
it  ain't  night  yet ;  it  ain't  time  to  go  to  bed  ; "  or  in 
another  case,  where  the  chickens  had  outgrown 
their  swaddling-clothes,  two  of  them  roosting  on 
their  mother's  back.  He  also  noticed  the  contrast 
between  the  hens,  as  they  went  to  roost,  and  the 
swallows,  whose  nests  were  hung  to  the  rafters  and 
purlins,  just  above  the  high  beams,  on  which  they 
roosted.  The  hens  seemed  inspired  with  the  very 
spirit  of  discord  the  moment  the  hour  of  retiring 
arrived.  Madame  Ebony,  rejoicing  in  the  dignity 


CHAKLIE    LEAKXING    A   NEW    LANGUAGE.      143 

of  nge,  and  a  grandmother,  was  shocked  that  a 
yellow-legged,  last  year's  late  chick,  that  had  not 
yet  laid  a  litter  of  eggs,  and  those  she  had  laid  not 
but  a  trifle  larger  than  potato  balls,  should  pre 
sume  to  roost  next  to  her,  and  began  picking  at 
her  to  drive  her  off  the  perch,  while  Mrs.  Vellow- 
legs  exclaimed,  "I'm  a  married  woman!  I'm  as 
good  as  you  are  any  day  in  the  year !  I'll  call  my 
husband ! " 

In  the  midst  of  this  brawl,  the  white  rooster, 
who  prefers  to  do  all  the  fighting  himself,  flies  up, 
and  knocks  them  both  down  into  the  barn  floor, 
when  every  hen  in  the  barn  screams  out  at  the  top 
of  her  voice,  "  Served  them  right !  " 
•  At  length  all  is  measurably  quiet.  A  dispute 
commences  between  Mrs.  Brown  and  Mrs.  White, 
in  which  all  take  sides,  as  to  which  has  had  the 
most  children.  This  is  hardly  over,  and  all  about 
to  compose  themselves  for  the  night,  when  the  old 
white  rooster  espies  a  younger  one  on  the  end  of 
the  same  beam,  close  to  the  eaves,  and  instantly 
calls  out,  "  Ah,  you  thought  I  didn't  see  you !  Get 
off  that  beam,  you  miserable  upstart!" 

"  I  won't.     I've  as  good  right  here  on  this  beam 

O  O 

as  you  have.     It  ain't  any  of  your  beam." 

Upon  this,  outraged  dignity,  to  avenge  himself, 


144    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

goes  walking  along  the  beam,  knocking  the  hens 
off,  who,  sputtering  and  fluttering,  fly  down  into 
the  floor,  where  they  are  followed  by  the  young 
upstart. 

The  pugnacious  fowls  have  become  quiet  at  last, 
except  that  occasionally  some  aggrieved  one  cries 
in  angry  tones,  "You  crowd,"  while  the  other  re 
plies,  "I  don't  —  'tis  yourself." 

How  different  the  swallows,  who,  having  tarried 
later  out  of  doors  than  the  fowls,  to  catch  the  in 
sects  that  are  then  abundant,  now  come  gliding  on 
swift  and  noiseless  wing  to  their  nests,  through  the 
holes  Charlie  had  cut  for  them.  Here  all  is  har 
mony,  love,  and  social  affection.  No  bickerings, 
no  struggle  for  preeminence,  but,  sitting  on  the  edge 
of  the  nest,  they  bid  each  other  good  night  in  a 
pleasant  twitter,  and  with  head  beneath-their  wing, 
sink  to  rest. 

He  also  took  pleasure  in  seeing  the  male  swal 
low  put  flies  into  the  mouth  of  his  mate,  as  she 
sat  patiently  upon  her  eggs,  or  watch  them  feed 
their  young  on  the  wing.  It  amused  him  to  see 
the  ducks  coming  up  from  the  brook  in  Indian  file. 

As  he  had  derived  much  pleasure  from  watching 
the  eave-swallows  as  they  built  their  nests,  he  was 
Equally  interested  in  looking  at  them  after  they 


CHARLIE    LEARNING    A    NEW    LANGUAGE.       145 

were  built  and  filled  with  birds,  —  their  heads  pro 
truding  from  the  doors-  of  their  dwellings,  —  also 
the  courage  they  displayed  in  driving  intruders 
from  their  premises. 

He  found  they  were  not  quite  so  mild  in  their 
dispositions  as  the  swallows  that  built  within,  and 
frequently  engaged  in  contests  with  them,  in  which 
they  were  generally  the  aggressors. 
10 


146   THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  X. 
WHEKE  THERE'S  A  WILL  THERE'S  A  WAT. 

WHEN  Charlie  had  put  his  garden  in  order,  and 
accomplished  other  necessary  things,  he  began 
ag?.in  to  work  at  his  boat. 

If  he  had  flattered  himself  that  his  difficulties 
were  over  when  the  boat  was  timbered  out,  he 
now  found  they  had  but  commenced.  It  was 
now  time  to  put  on  the  binding  streak.  He  meas 
ured  up  from  the  keel  at  the  stem  aiul  stern  for  his 
sheer,  and  marked  it  on  the  timbers  ;  then  marked 
the  depth  of  the  old  boat  on  the  midship  timbers, 
and  measured  down  from  these  marks  for  the  width 
of  his  top  streak.  He  then  worked  a  ribband  along 
these  marks  from  stem  to  stern.  Those  marks, 
which  formed  the  guide  for  the  lower  edge  of  his 
top  streak,  also  answered  for  the  top  of  his  binding 
streak.  He  had  made  the  top  streak  of  one  uni 
form  width,  but  he  now  perceived  that  the  distance 
was  so  much  greater  from  the  keel  to  the  gunwale 
of  the  boat,  over  the  middle  than  at  the  ends,  that  he 


WHERE  THERE'S  A  WILL  THERE'S  A  WAY.  147 

should  get  up  at  the  ends  before  he  was  more  than 
t\vo  thirds  up  at  the  middle.  He  also  saw  that,  by 
reason  of  the  greater  fulness  aft,  the  planks  must  be 
wider  at  the  ends  aft  than  forward.  He  therefore 
divided  them  into  proportionate  widths  to  fill  up; 
but  as  he  thought  he  had  noticed  that  the  upper 
streak  on  boats  was  of  a  uniform  width,  he  resolved 
to  let  that  remain.  He  now  measured  down  from 
the  ribband  for  his  binding  streak,  got  it  out  by 
the  marks,  and  put  it  on  ;  but  to  his  mortification 
it  stuck  up  in  the  air  at  both  ends.  He  could 
scarcely  believe  his  eyes.  He  went  over  his  marks 
again.  They  were  all  right,  and  yet  the  ends  stuck 
up  far  above  the  marks.  Had  these  marks  been 
made  on  a  flat  surface,  the  plank  would  have  gone 
on  fair.  It  was  the  twist  of  the  boat  that  threw 
them  up.  He  now  saAV,  to  his  cost,  that  planking  a 
boat  was  quite  a  different  thing  from  boarding  a 
barn.  The  upper  edge  of  the  plank  came  all  right 
along  the  marks,  but  the  lower  edge  stood  away  off, 
and  the  moment  he  crowded  that  down  to  its  place, 
tip  came  the  upper  edge. 

"Guess  I've  got  a  job  before  me  now,"  said 
Charlie.  Foreseeing  that  he  should  spoil  many 
plank,  and  that  they  would  be  too  stiff  to  bend 
and  work  with  as  patterns,  with  Ben's  aid  he 


148    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

sawed  out  some  oak  pieces  very  thin,  and  as  these 
were  green,  they  would  bend  easily. 

"Father,  how  do  carpenters  put  plank  on  a 
vessel?" 

"  I  don't  know.     I  never  noticed." 

"  Didn't  you  put  the  wales  and  garboards  on  the 
Ark?" 

"No;  Joe  Griffin  and  Uncle  Isaac  put  them  on, 
while  you  and  I  were  towing  rafts  to  the  mill." 

But  Charlie  had  not  the  least  idea  of  relinquish 
ing  effort,  or  yielding  to  difficulties,  however  great. 

There  was  one  essential  thing  in  Charlie's  favor. 
Timber  was  then  worth  very  little,  and  it  didn't 
matter  much  how  many  patterns  he  spoiled.  It 
was  only  the  loss  of  labor  in  sawing  the  oak. 

He  now  went  resolutely  to  work. 

"  It  must  be  done,  and  I  can  and  will  do  it,"  was 
Charlie's  motto. 

After  a  great  many  trials,  which  produced  no 
satisfactory  results,  he  at  length  hit  upon  a  plan. 
Noticing  that  his  plank  ran  up  when  he  brought  it 
to,  he  took  a  board  wide  enough  when  brought  to 
the  timbers  to  cover  the  mark  for  the  lower  edge 
of  the  streak,  notwithstanding  its  running  up.  He 
made  his  marks  on  the  sides  of  the  timbers  where 
he  could  see  them  from  the  inside,  and  then  get- 


WHERE  THERE'S  A  WILL  THERE'S  A  WAT.  149 

ting  into  the  boat,  marked  the  distance  on  both 
edges  at  every  timber,  then  struck  a  line  from 
mark  to  mark,  leaving  some  wood  "  to  come  and 
go  upon,"  as  the  carpenter's  phrase  is.  In  this  way, 
by  great  care,  cutting  and  paring,  he  brought  his 
pattern  to  an  exact  fit,  and  got  put  his  streaks  by 
it,  the  same  pattern  answering  for  both  streaks, 
both  sides  being  alike. 

It  was  an  everlasting  sight  of  work,  but  Charlie 
possessed  that  indispensable  attribute  to  success, 
patient  perseverance.  Ships  and  boats,  in  their 
present  state  of  perfection,  are  the  results  of  the 
efforts  of  hand  and  brain  for  ages,  each  century 
adding  its  mite. 

In  boat-building,  as  in  all  mechanical  employ 
ments,  there  are  certain  rules  which  are  taught  by 
masters  to  their  apprentices,  having  themselves 
received  them  from  others,  by  which  hundreds  of 
men  work,  who  could  never  have  discovered  them 
themselves.  It  was  no  marvel,  then,  that  this  boy, 
though  a  natural  mechanic,  did  not  know  how  to 
work  plank,  since,  without  instruction,  he  must 
begin  at  the  bottom  and  work  it  out  himself.  lie 
put  on  his  top  streak  the  same  way  as  the  others. 

The  two  planks  of  a  boat  next  the  keel  are 
called  the  garboards,  and  are  the  most  difficult  to 


150    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

put  on,  as  the  workman  there  has  to  contend  with 
the  peculiar  twist  which  the  planks  of  a  boat  re 
ceive  at  the  stem  and  stern,  and  also  to  fit  the 
plank  to  the  circular  rabbet  at  the  ends.  How 
ever,  he  was  equal  to  the  task.  Taking  a  very 
•wide,  thin  oak  board,  he  steamed  it  a  long  time, 
till  it  was  as  limber  as  a  rag;  then  he  put  the  lower 
edge  against  the  keel,  and  setting  shores  against  it, 
jammed  it  into  the  timber  the  whole  length.  He 
then  removed  one  of  the  end  shores,  so  that  he 
could  take  the  plank  off  a  little  to  see  where  to 
mark,  and  began  to  scratch  and  cut. 

When  he  had  fitted  the  wood  ends  and  the 
lower  edge,  he  got  inside,  and  scribed  along  the 
timbers  for  the  width  of  the  plank.  It  was  slow 
work,  but  encouraged  by  feeling  that  ultimate  suc 
cess  was  only  a  question  of  time,  he  persevered  till 
his  pattern  fitted  to  a  shaving.  By  this  he  got  out 
his  two  streaks,  and  put  them  on,  only  nailing  suf 
ficiently  to  keep  them  in  shape,  as  he  thought  he 
might  possibly  wish  to  make  some  alteration  in  the 
width.  When  he  had  driven  in  the  last  nail,  he 
flung  his  hammer  the  whole  length  of  the  barn 
floor,  and  stretched  himself  on  the  hay,  completely 
tired. 

"I  don't  see  what  makes  me  feel  so  tired!     I 


WHERE  THERE'S  A  \VILL  THERE'S  A  WAY.  151 

feel  as  tired  as  though  I  had  been  lifting  rocks  all 
day,  and  yet  I've  only  been  tinkering  about  this 
boat." 

Charlie  had  in  reality  been  sweating  his  brain., 
and  experienced  the  fatigue  which  results  from 
mental  labor.  Indeed,  he  was  so  wearied  that 
Sally,  after  blowing  the  horn  in  vain  for  him  td 
come  to  supper,  went  to  look  for  him,  and  found 
him  sound  asleep  on  the  hay.  Il'e  now  resolved 
to  do  no  more  on  his  boat  till  haying  was  over. 

Perhaps  some  of  our  young  readers,  who  have  not 
Charlie's  mechanical  turn,  may  be  a  little  weary  of 
these  details.  We  shall  therefore  tell  then),  in  con 
fidence,  why  we  have  been  so  minute,  and  also  why 
we  intend  to  deal  a  little  more  —  that  is,  after  hay 
ing —  in  these  technicalities. 


152   THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XL 

POMP'S  POND. 

No  matter  what  year  we  were  at  Andover. 
There  was  then,  and  I  suppose  is  now,  in  that 
staid  old  town,  a  certain  pond,  called  Pomp's  Pond, 
in  which  grew  any  quantity  of  pond  lilies,  and 
some  small  fish. 

These  lilies  grew  in  deep  water,  which  was 
black,  full  of  sediment  and  slime,  and  withal  not 
very  pleasant  to  go  into.  These  lilies  were  in 
great  request  among  the  theological  and  Phillips 
Academy  students. 

The  Academy  boys  were  also  very  fond  of  fishing 
there ;  and  the  only  available  boat  was  a  wherry, 
belonging  to  a  man  by  the  name  of  Goldsmith, 
who,  to  keep  the  boys  from  getting  her,  kept  her 
at  his  house  near  by. 

When  any  parties  wished  to  hire  her,  he  hauled 
her  down  with  his  oxen,  and,  when  their  time  was 
up,  hauled  her  back  again. 

We  were  as  fond  of  lilies  and  fishing  as  the  next 


POMP'S  POND.  153 

one;  but  the  idea  of  being  tied  clown  to  Gold 
smith  did  not  agree  at  all  with  our  notions.  We 
required  a  larger  liberty,  and  altogether  more  sea- 
room.  We  therefore  resolved  to  build  a  wherry 
of  our  own,  to  go  and  come  when  we  liked,  moon 
light  nights  and  all.  We  had  at  first  intended  to 
make  her  large  enough  to  take  a  friend  or  two 
with  us,  but  the  difficulty  that  presented  itself  at 
the  outset  was,  where  we  should  keep  her.  If  we 
kept  her  at  the  pond,  all  the  Academy  boys  would 
be  in  her  from  morning  till  nicjht,  and  when  we 

O  O  ' 

Avanted  her,  they  would  be  off  in  the  pond,  or  the 
oars  would  be  lost  or  broken,  and  besides,  she 
would  be  too  heavy  to  haul  out  and  hide  in  the 
woods. 

As  a  preliminary,  we  made  a  critical  survey  of 
the  pond  and  surroundings,  when  it  appeared  that 
upon  one  side  was  a  quagmire,  abounding  in  cat 
tail  (cooper's)  flags,  abutting  on  some  sandy  land 
covered  with  a  thick  growth  of  pitch-pine  and 
brush.  In  view  of  these  circumstances,  we  re 
solved  to  make  a  wherry  only  large  enough  to  con 
tain  our  own  person,  and  so  light  that  we  could 
carry  it  on  the  shoulder,  or,  by  tying  the  ends  of 
our  neckerchief  together,  and  flinging  it  over  the 

C_>  O         O 

stem,  drag  it  through  this  flag  swamp,  where  no 


154    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

one  could  follow,  and  hide  it  in  the  woods.  We 
had  also  ascertained  a  fact  not  known  to  the  boys 
• —  that  the  roots  of  the  flag  will  support  one ;  but  if 
you  step  between,  down  you  go. 

What  a  nice  thing  it  would  have  been,  then,  to 
have  had  some  one  tell  us  how  to  make  the  boat ! 
But  there  was  no  one,  and,  like  Charlie  on  Elm. 
Island,  we  were  flung  upon  our  own  resources ;  nor 
was  material  so  plentiful  with  us  as  with  him: 
however,  we  procured  some  apple  tree  limbs,  where 
Jacob  Abbot  had  been  trimming  his  orchard,  for 
timbers,  and  went  into  Mr.  Hidden's  carpenter's 
shop  to  build  her. 

I  shan't  tell  you  how  wide  she  was,  but  when  we 
sat  in  the  middle  of  her,  there  was  very  little  room 
between  our  body  and  the  sides ;  and  in  order  to 
have  her  as  light  as  possible,  the  planks  were  only 
three  sixteenths  of  an  inch  thick,  and  the  timbers 
and  knees  in  proportion.  It  was  necessary  to  keep 
a  little  ballast  in,  both  to  keep  her  steady,  and  to 
put  at  one  end  when  we  were  in  the  other,  and 
which,  to  economize  room,  consisted  of  some  flat, 
thick  pieces  of  iron.  In  so  narrow  a  craft,  which  it 
required  almost  the  skill  of  a  rope-dancer  to  keep 
on  her  bottom,  it  is  evident  the  seat  must  be  low: 
it  consisted  of  a  board  laid  across  the  bottom,  with 


POMP'S  POND.  155 

three  cleats,  three  inches  thick,  nailed  across  the 
under  side,  to  keep  it  up  a  little  from  the  bottom; 
for  though  she  was  perfectly  tight,  as  far  as  leak 
age  was  concerned,  her  planks  were  so  thin,  as, 
after  a  while,  to  soak  water,  which  was  at  length  in 
a  great  degree  remedied  by  painting  her;  she  was 
as  light  as  an  Indian  canoe  of  the  same  size,  which 
we,  at  one  time,  thought  of  making,  but  were  pre 
vented  from  want  of  bark. 

When  she  was  done,  and  a  paddle  made,  one 
evening  when  there  were  stars,  but  no  moon,  we 
carried  her  on  our  shoulder  to  the  sandy  ground 
at  the  edge  of  the  flag  swamp,  and  dug  a  hole  large 
enough  to  receive  her,  carrying  all  the  earth  dug 
out,  in  a  basket,  and  throwing  it  into  the  pond  ;  we 
then  put  her  in  the  hole,  and  covered  the  mouth 
of  it  with  brush  that  had  lain  a  long  time  in  the 
woods,  so  that  nothing  appeared  to  attract  notice. 

Great  was  the  surprise  of  the  visitors  to  the 
pond,  the  next  Saturday  afternoon,  to  see  a  person 
in  a  boat,  anchored,  and  quietly  fishing. 

Strenuous  were  the  efforts  of  the  Academy  stu 
dents  to  find  where  this  new  craft  was  kept,  in 
creasing  in  vigor  as  pond-lily  time  drew  near. 
Every  nook  and  corner  of  the  woods  was  searched, 
and  every  bush  peeped  under  in  vain. 


156    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

It  was  equally  idle  to  watch  and  see  where  he 
landed :  all  they  knew  was,  that  he  disappeared 
among  the  flags,  and  before  they  could  make  their 
way  through  the  mud  and  thick  mat  of  bushes 
that  margined  that  side  of  the  pond,  the  boat  was 
no  longer  visible,  and  he  would  be  found  sitting 
under  a  tree,  or  with  his  hands  full  of  lilies. 

Equally  unsuccessful  were  all  attempts  to  per 
suade  him  to  let  them  get  into  her,  a  very  good 
reason  for  which  being  the  certainty  of  their  up 
setting,  which  the  following  occurrence  will  attest. 

One  sunshiny  morning  we  were  strolling  with  a 
friend,  who  has  since  made  some  stir  in  the  world, 
along  the  shores  of  the  pond  in  quest  of  berries. 
There  were  a  great  many  lilies  in  bloom,  some  of 
which  he  desired  to  present  to  a  friend. 

"  Come,  K.,  go  and  get  your  boat  and  pick  some 
of  those  lilies." 

"I  will  if  you'll  give  me  your  word  that  you  will 
remain  here,  and  not  follow,  to  see  where  I  take 
her  from,  or  where  I  put  her." 

"  Well,  I  will ;  I'll  sit  down  on  this  rock,  and 
won't  stir  from  it  till  you  return.  Let  me  go  and 
get  them,"  he  said,  as  we  brought  the  little  affair  to 
the  beach. 

"  You  can't  go  in  her  ;  you'll  upset." 


POMP'S  TOXD.  157 

"  Tell  me  I  can't  go  in  a  boat !  I  was  born  and 
brought  up  on  Cape  Cod,  and  have  been  used  to 
boats  all  ray  life." 

"  Can't  help  where  you  were  born  ;  going  in  a 
thing  like  that  isn't  a  matter  of  birthright.  I  have 
a  cousin  who  is  a  watchmaker,  and  I  used  to  sleep 
with  him,  but  I  can't  make  a  watch  for  all  that; 
you'd  have  her  bottom  up  in  five  minutes." 

"Nonsense;  take  my  gun,  and  let  me  get  the 
lilies." 

We  took  the  gun  and  went  into  the  woods ;  but 
it  was  not  long  before  we  heard  the  cries  of, 
"  Help !  help !  "  and  returning  to  the  pond,  found 
the  surface  covered  with  floating  lilies,  in  the  midst 
of  which  was  a  broad-brimmed  hat,  the  boat 
bottom  up,  and  our  Cape  Cod  friend  clinging 
to  her. 

Those  were  pleasant  days,  rainbow-tinted;  and 
though  more  sombre  hues  have  since  succeeded,  I 
love  to  look  even  on  the  sky  from  which  they 
have  faded. 

There  was  a  fine  set  of  boys  at  Phillips  Acad 
emy  then,  many  of  whom  have  nobly  justified 
their  early  promise  ;  while  others,  the  centre  of 
many  loving  hearts,  have  gone  to  early  graves,  like 
a  leaf  that  falls  in  June.  It  is  sometimes  hard  to 


158    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

keep  back  the  tears,  as  I  recall  those  bright  faces, 
and  the  pleasant  hours  we  have  spent  together, 
especially  in  the  Sunday  school. 

Gus  Daniels  was  a  splendid  boy :  how  we  all 
loved  him !  Well  do  I  remember  when  he  came 
to  the  mansion-house,  fresh  from  home,  a  shrink 
ing,  diffident  boy,  and  was  set  down  at  the  break 
fast-table,  with  a  large  company  of  theological 
students,  too  frightened  to  ask  for  anything,  and 
trying  to  make  himself  as  small  as  possible.  "We 
helped  the  little  fellow,  endeavored  to  converse 
with  and  assure  him,  and  at  dinner  found  him, 
again  beside  us.  The  next  Sunday  morning  found 
him  in  my  class  in  Sunday  school;  and,  as 'those 
will  who  are  like  attempered,  we  gradually  grew 
together:  how  I  loved  him!  and  perceiving  what 
was  in  him,  I  began  to  stimulate  and  encourage  him 
to  worthy  effort;  he  leaped  under  it  like  a  generous 
horse  to  the  pressure  of  his  rider's  knee.  Many  a 
Phillips  Academy  boy  and  Harvard-  student  will 
remember  him,  who  died  just  as  he  was  putting  on 
his  harness.  But  then  there  was  no  shadow  of  the 
sepulchre,  nor  taint  of  disease,  upon  him.  There 
was  an  innate  attractiveness  which  made  it  pleas 
ant  even  to  sit  in  the  same  room  with  him, 
though  no  word  was  spoken,  and  his  lovable  and 
taking  ways  won  every  heart. 


POMP'S  POXD.  159 

The  lilies  were  now  in  full  bloom,  arid  he,  with 
others,  had  resolved  upon  a  mighty  and  combined 
attempt  to  find  the  whereabouts  of  that  mysterious 
boat.  I  was  made  aware,  while  quietly  fishing,  of 
the  presence  of  a  great  number  of  boys  on  the 
the  shore. 

«  Mr.  K. !  " 

No  reply. 

«  Mr.  K. ! " 

"  In  Zanadu  did  Kubla  Khan 

A  stately  pleasure  dome  decree, 
Where  Alph,  the  sacred  river,  ran, 
Through  caverns  measureless  to  man, 
Down  to  a  sunless  sea." 

"  Speak  louder,  Gus." 
"Mr.  A:/" 

"O'er  Tempe's  god-frequented  streams 

There  broods  a  holy  spell, 
And  still  in  Greece,  the  land  of  dreams, 
Heroic  memories  dwell." 

"He's  talking  to  the  fishes,  Gus:  he  don't  hear." 

"  lie  don't  want  to  hear  :  he  suspects  what  we 
are  after." 

A  universal  shout,  that  made  the  woods  ring, 
now  compelled  attention. 

"  Good  afternoon,  boys." 


160    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"Good  afternoon,  sir." 

"This  afternoon  is  so  delightful,  the  place  so 
quiet  and  conducive  to  reverie,  I  have  insensibly 
fallen  into  reflection  respecting  a  subject  that  has 
often  been  a  matter  of  thought,  and  as  often  caused 
perplexity." 

"  What  may  that  be,  sir  ?  " 

"  "Whether  Vulcan  didn't  dull  his  axe  when  he 
split  Jupiter's  head  open." 

"  We  have  a  matter  that  has  caused  us  no  little 
perplexity  we  want  to  know  where  you  keep  that 
boat,  and  we're  not  going  to  leave  till  we  do 
know." 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  young  people,  the  strength  of 
the  country,  have  wants;  wants  are  the  foundation 
of  all  progress,  both  in  science  and  the  arts." 

"How  so,  Mr.  K.?" 

"  Because,  Gus,  when  men  begin  to  have  wants 
they  naturally  try  to  gratify  them,  and  the  more 
they  gratify  them  the  more  they  have,  and  thus 
they  better  their  position.  For  instance,  I  wanted 
pond  lilies,  and  to  catch  fish ;  so  I  built  this  boat : 
that  bettered  my  position,  as  you  perceive,"  — 
pulling  up  a  pout,  —  "else,  instead  of  sitting  here 
quietly  fishing  and  reflecting,  I  should,  like  you,  be 
standing  on  the  shore,  looking  and  longing." 


POMP'S  POXD.  161 

"  Well,  we're  going  to  sec." 

"  It  would  be  very  desirable,  as  it  would  remove 
a  great  deal  of  perplexity  from  your  minds,  and 
restore  universal  peace  and  satisfaction." 

"  Why  so  ?  " 

"  Because  you  are  now  very  much  perplexed  in 
opinion,  and  confused  in  your  notions;  some  of  you 
think  I  keep  this  boat  under  water,  others  in  the 
top  of  a  tree,  and  a  few,  that  I  have  an  ointment  I 
got  of  an  Indian,  which,  being  rubbed  on  her,  turns 
her  into  a  cat-tail  flag;  but  seeing  is  believing,  and 
would  at  once  remove  all  doubts  and  reconcile  all 
conflicting  opinions." 

"  If  you  don't  let  us  see,  we  won't  come  to  your 
Sunday  school  class  to-morrow." 

"Yes,  you  will,  Gns,  because  you'll  have  to;  if 
you're  absent,  you'll  be  marked  absent,  and  Uncle 
Sam  will  know  the  reason  why. 

Arc  ye  not  marked,  ye  men  of  Dalecarlia  ? ' " 

"  O,  if  we  could  only  rind  out,  wouldn't  we  hide 
her  where;  he  couldn't  find  her!" 

"  This  is  a  world  of  perplexities  and  disappoint 
ments;  there  is  one  thing  I  have  always  wanted  to 
ascertain,  but  latterly  have  quite  despaired  of  it; 
therefore  I  know  how  to  sympathize  wHh  you." 
11 


162    THE    VOTING    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

<? What  is  that,  Mr.  K.  ?  " 

"  Where  Hannibal  got  his  vinegar." 

"If  I  live,  I  mean  to  ask  Uncle  Sam;  he  thinks 
he's  great  on  the  classics ;  that'll  stick  him." 

"  I'll  get  you  all  the  lilies  you  want,  boys." 

"That  is  not  what  we  want;  we  want  to  have 
the  boat,  and  get  them  ourselves." 

"I  can  appreciate  that  moral  sentiment,  Will 
Gunton,  just  as  I  receive  greater  enjoyment  haul 
ing  up  this  fish," — pulling  in  a  pickerel,  —  "than 
you  do  from  merely  looking  at  me." 

"  O)  }'e  gods  and  little  fishes,  if  he  is  not  enough 
to  provoke  a  saint." 

"  I  assent  to  that  opinion  likewise,  for  I  vexed 
Dr.  Woods  yesterday." 

"In  what  way?" 

"By  asking  him  what  the  difference  was  between 
whoever  and  whosoever." 

"  Well,  if  you  won't  let  us  have  the  boat,  or  do 
anything  for  us,  we  won't  love  you  as  we  have 
done;  Uncle  Sam  can't  mark  us  for  that." 

"  Yes,  you  will,  Gus,  for  you  can't  help  it." 

"What's  the  reason  we  can't  help  it?" 

"Can  you  help  loving  honey?" 

"No,  sir;  because  that  is  natural." 

"  Is  it  not  as  natural  to  love  those  who  love  us?" 


POMP'S  POND.  163 

"  If  you  loved  us,  you  would  gratify  us,  and  let 
us  have  the  boat." 

"  That  is  just  the  reason  I  don't  let  you  have  it, 
because  I  know  you  would  be  drowned." 

"  You  only  say  that  because  you  don't  want  us 
to  have  the  boat.  You  love  us,  but  you  won't  do 
anything  for  us." 

"  Xo,  I  never  did  anything  for  you!  "Who  writes 
your  dialogues  and  declamations,  and  does  a  host 
of  other  unmentionable  things?  There  is  not  a 
great  deal  of  gratitude  this  year,  I  suppose,  because 
it  is  so  dry." 

"  O,  Mr.  K.,  I'll  take  it  all  back !  I'm  sorry  I 
said  it,  and  sorrier  that  I  thought  it." 

"  If  I  don't  want  you  to  be  drowned,  I  am  dis 
posed  to  contribute  to  your  enjoyment.  I'll  take 
you  all  over  to  the  North  Parish  Pond,  where  is  a 
large  boat,  and  sail  you  to  your  hearts'  content; 
that  is,  if  you'll  be  good  boys  and  go  away." 

"  We  are  very  much  obliged  to  you,  but  we've 
made  up  our  minds  to  see  where  you  keep  that 
boat,  and  we  can't  give  it  up  ;  that  is  what  we 
came  for.  There  are  enough  of  us  to  surround  the 
pond,  flag  swamp  and  all.  You  will  have  to  give 
it  up,  Mr.  K.  We  are  resolved  to  know,  if  we  stay 
here  all  night." 


164    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM    ISLAND. 

"Resolution  is  a  great  thing  in  a  young  man. 
Resolution  carried  the  great  Washington  across 
the  Delaware.  As  I  understand  it,  you  are,  one 
and  all,  resolved  to  know  where  I  keep  this  boat." 

"  So  say  we  all  of  us." 

"  If  I  will  let  you  see  where  I  put  her,  will  you 
be  satisfied?" 

A  unanimous  shout  testified  their  assent. 

"Well,  then,  look  and  see  where  I  put  her." 

The  boatman,  after  stringing  the  fish,  and  hang 
ing  them  around  his  neck,  placing  iron  on  the 
seat  and  paddle  in  order  to  keep  them  from  float 
ing  up,  pulled  the  plug  out  of  the  bottom  of 
the  boat,  the  ballast  carried  her  down,  and  he 
swam  ashore.  There  was  one  little  detail  of  these 
proceedings  that  even  their  sharp  eyes  failed  to 
notice.  They  did  not  see  him  fasten  the  plug  of 
the .  boat  to  a  fishing-line,  the  other  end  of  which 
was  attached  to  the  boat,  and  drop  it  overboard  to 
mark  the  spot.  When  the  little  piece  of  wood, 
only  two  inches  long,  was  in  the  water,  it  was  no 
longer  visible  from  the  shore,  and  would  not  be 
easily  found,  except  by  one  who  had  taken  the 
bearings  of  some  objects  on  the  shore  from  the 
boat  itself.  The  boys  on  their  way  home  congrat 
ulated  themselves  that  Mr.  K.  had  disappointed 


POMP'S  POND.  105 

himself  as  much  as  them.  At  any.  rate,  they  would 
no  more  be  tantalized  by  witnessing  sport  which 
they  could  not  share.  But  the  Fourth  of  July 
morning  there  was  Mr.  K.  in  the  boat,  getting 
lilies! 

"  We  might  as  well  give  it  up,  boys,"  said  Will 
Gunton ;  "we  shall  find  where  he  keeps  her  when 
we  find  where  Hannibal  got  his  vinegar." 

Upon  leaving  those  parts,  we  buried  her  like  an 
Indian  chief,  with  the  paddle  and  anchor  in  her, 
and  no  Phillips  Academy  boy,  or  prowling  the 
ological  student,  has  ever  found  the  grave  till  this 
day,  nor  ever  will. 

We  haven't  forgotten  how  these  boys  felt;  there 
fore  we  would  give  such  outlines  that  any  boy  of 
mechanical  turn,  who  has  tools,  pluck,  and  patience, 
may  by  their  aid  build  himself  a,  safe  and  service 
able  boat. 

Charlie's  boat,  the  dimensions  of  which  will  be 
given,  is  rather  narrow,  but  it  was  all  his  log  would 
allow,  and  lie  had  not  yet  had  experience  enough 
to  deviate  from  the  copy. 

But  if  a  boy  is  to  build  a  boat,  he  had  better 
make  her  wider,  five  feet  beam  instead  of  four,  to 
eighteen  of  length,  or  four  feet  six  inches  beam 
and  fourteen  feet  in  length ;  then  she  will  be  stiff, 
and  need  less  ballast. 


166    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP    ELM    ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CHARLIE  UNCONSCIOUSLY  PREFIGURES  THE  FUTURE. 

THE  hay  harvest  was  now  secured.  From  the 
additional  land  cleared  on  the  island,  and  from  the 
large  field  of  natural  grass  on  Griffin's  Island,  Ben 
had  obtained  a  noble  crop,  and  also  one  of  rye. 

He  had  a  large  piece  of  corn  planted  on  a  burn, 
also  potatoes,  flax,  and  wheat.  The  garden  was  in 
fine  order,  and  everything  wore  the  appearance  of 
plenty  and  comfort.  The  land,  at  the  burning  of 
which  Fred  Williams  had  so  nearly  met  his  death, 
he  had  not  planted  again,  as  he  intended  it  for  an 
orchard,  and  did  not  want  to  wear  it  out. 

On  this  piece  Charlie  and  his  father  now  set  to 
work.  They  cut  all  the  sprouts  that  had  come  up 
from  the  stumps,  cut  down  a  good  many  old  stubs 
that  had  been  left  in  clearing,  picked  up  all  the 
brands  and  pieces  of  logs,  then  mowed  down  all 
the  fire  and  pigeon  weed,  that  had  come  up  in 
quantities,  and  when  it  was  dry,  set  it  all  on  fire. 

Ben  intended,  in  the  fall,  to  set  out  his  apple 


CHAELIE    PREFIGURES    THE    FUTURE.  167 

trees  right  among  the  stumps  and  ashes,  and  never 
to  plough  the  ground,  but  to  keep  the  growth  of 
sprouts  and  weeds' down  •with  the  axe  and  scythe. 

When  Charlie  again  resumed  work  upon  his  boat, 
a  new  train  of  thought  took  possession  of  his 
mind,  which,  although  it  troubled  him  not  a  little, 
led  eventually  to  very  important  results.  It  was 
this  —  that  notwithstanding  he  had  succeeded  thus 
far,  received  the  praises  of  Ben  and  Sally,  and  felt 
sure  he  should  complete  his  boat,  yet  thus  far  he 
had  been,  and  would  still  be,  a  copyist;  that  he 
had  taken  the  model  of  the  West  Wind  from  a 
mackerel,  the  model  of  this  boat  from  the  West 
Wind,  and  that  all  he  had  originated  were  the 
trifling  alterations  he  had  made  in  the  first  model. 
Resolved  to  be  something  better  than  an  imitator, 
he  set  to  work,  and  modelled  a  boat  from  a  solid 
block,  three  feet  long,  and  entirely  different  from 
the  West  Wind. 

"  There,"  said  Charlie,  "  that  is  mine,  at  any  rate  ; 
and  now,  if  I  take  the  shape  of  that  with  pieces  of 
boards  and  imitate  it,  it  will  be  my  own  contrivance." 

It  now  struck  him  that  this  was  a  roundabout  way 
to  build  a  boat,  and  that  no  person  could  ever  get  his 
living  building  boats  in  the  way  he  was  doing  — 
making  a  model,  and  then  taking  the  shape  of  that 


168    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

with  pieces  of  boards.  There  must  be  some  gen 
eral  principles,  as  there  were  in  framing  buildings. 

"There's  some  rule,  I  know,"  said  he,  "and  I'll 
not  strike  another  clip  till  I  have  clone  my  best  to 
find  out  what  it  is.  I  don't  like  to  work  altogether 
by  guess,  and  in  the  dark." 

He  measured  his  boat.  She  was  eighteen  feet 
long,  four  feet  beam  (wide),  and  eighteen  inches 
deep.  He  then  measured  from  the  keel  up  to 
where  the  top  streak  entered  the  stem,  when  he 
found  it  was  a  half  more  than  the  depth  amid 
ships.  He  then  measured  from  the  keel  to  where 
the  top  streak  met  the  transom.  It  was  a  quarter 
more  than  the  depth  amidships.  Thus  the  rise 
from  the  dead  level  at  the  middle  was  nine  inches 
at  the  stem  and  four  and  a  half  at  the  stern.  To 
be  sure  this  made  the  boat  curve  very  much  ;  but  it 
was  the  fashion  in  that  day,  both  in  respect  to  ves 
sels  and  boats,  to  give  them  a  great  sheer.  It  was 
not  without  its  advantages.  They  were  safer,  for 
when  laden  there  was  more  of  them  out  of  water. 

Charlie  had  given  his  boat  a  rank  sheer  even  for 
that  day  ;  but,  as  usual,  he  had  a  very  good  reason 
for  it.  He  wanted  room  inside,  and,  as  he  could 
have  only  the  width  the  log  would  allow,  he  had 
compensated  for  it  by  giving  her  all  the  length  he 


CHARLIE    PREFIGURES    THE    FUTURE.  169 

thought  prudent.  He  next  endeavored  to  gain  all 
the  room  he  could  in  height  at  the  ends,  and  this 
rise  of  nine  inches  forward  and  four  and  a  half  aft 
would,  when  he  came  to  finish,  afford  him  a  splen 
did  chance  for  lockers,  in  which  to  put  all  those 
matters  that  boys  want  to  carry.  He  measured 
her  width  at  the  forward  floor  timber  on  top.  It 
was  three  feet.  At  the  after  floor  it  was  three  feet 
eight  inches. 

"At  any  rate,"  said  he,  "  I  have  got  some  guide 
for  the  top.  Now  for  the  bottom." 

He  chalked  it  out  on  the  barn  floor  to  see  what 
it  looke  i  like,  and  set  down  the  dimensions  in  his 
book,  then  measured  across  the  head  of  the  middle 
floor  timber. 

"\Vhc\v!"  cried  he;  "it's  just  half  the  length 
of  the  beam.  "Wonder  if  they're  all  in  that  pro 
portion."  By  measurement  he  found  they  were. 

"Xo\v  there's  a  rule  for  you.  The  length  of  the 
floor  timbers  is  half  the  breadth  of  the  beam. 
Just  half  as  fast  as  she  narrows  above  she  narrows 
below.  I've  got  a  water-line." 

Down  goes  that  in  his  book.  But,  upon  reflec 
tion,  he  perceived  this  was  not  all  he  wanted. 

"I  thought  I'd  got  what  I  wanted,  but  I  haven't. 
This  will  give  me  a  water-line  along  the  heads  of 


170    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAXD. 

the  floor  timbers,  but  not  the  shape  of  the  bottom 
belo\v;  that's  what  I  want.  There  are  no  rules 
and  regulations,  after  all ;  you've  got  to  make  a 
frame,  set  it  up,  work  a  ribband  along,  and  squint  at 
it,  cut  and  cut,  fuss  and  fuss,  till  you  get  it  to  suit 
your  eye ;  or  else  make  a  model  and  go  through  all 
the  slavery  with  pieces  of  boards  that  I  have  in 
building  this  boat  thus  far.  O,  it's  an  endless  job 
to  build  a  boat." 

Vexed  and  disappointed,  he  flung  his  rule  into 
the  boat ;  when  the  slight  irritation  had  passed  by, 
he  took  up  his  rule  again. 

He  flung  it  with  such  violence  between  the  two 
garboard  planks  that  it  had  taken  their  shape  and 
that  of  the  sharp  riser  beside  which  it  fell,  and 
being  new,  and  the  joint  stiff,  retained  it. 

"  How  much  that  looks  like  the  letter  V !  That's 
quite  a  different  shape  from  the  midship  timber." 
lie  put  the  rule  beside  this  timber,  and  spread  it 
apart  till  the  shape  corresponded.  "  How  shoal  it 
is!"  holding  it  up. 

The  sight  put  an  idea  into  the  head  of  the  keen 
witted  boy  in  an  instant.  He  perceived  that  the 
shape  of  the  bottom  below  the  heads  of  the  floor 
timbers  corresponded  exactly  to  the  depth  from  the 
heads  of  the  floor  timbers  to  the  keel ;  he  laid  a  long 


CHARLIE    PREFIGURES    THE    FUTURE.  171 

rule  across  the  heads  of  the  middle  floor  timber,  and 
measured  the  distance  from  the  centre  of  that  rule  to 
the  keel;  it  was  three  inches:  he  measured  the  for 
ward  one ;  it  was  six ;  the  after  one  ;  it  was  six  and  a 
half:  she  was  sharper  aft  than  forward.  lie  found 
that  there  was  a  regular  gradation  in  the  depth  from 
the  middle  timber,  both  forward  and  aft.  He  took 
a  board  the  length  of  the  floor  timber,  found  the 
centre  of  it,  which  corresponded  to  centre  of  the 
keel ;  from  this  point  he  drew  a  line  three  inches  in 
height,  then  drew  two  others  of  the  same  height  at 
an  inch  distance  on  either  side,  to  represent  the 
width  of  the  keel  :  he  then  drew  two  lines  from  the 
edges  of  the  keel  to  the  ends  of  the  board  (iig.  1), 


when  he  found  that  he  had  the  exact  shape  of  the 
middle  floor  timber,  and  of  course  of  the  bottom 
at  that  place :  lie  then 
took  the  shape  of  the 
forward  one  (fig.  2). 

He  had  mastered  the  carpenter's  principle  of  the 
dead  rise,  although  he  didn't  know  what  to  call  it. 

"Hurrah!"  shouted  the  exultant  boy,  flinging 
the  mould  up  over  his  head  with  such  force  that  it 
knocked  two  hens,  who  were  just  settling  them 
selves  for  the  night,  from  the  roost,  and  excited  a 


172    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

general  uproar.  "  I've  got  something  to  start  from 
now;  it's  the  rise  from  the  keel  that  shapes  the 
bottom.  When  anybody  is  going  to  build  a  boat, 
they  always  know  the  length,  width,  and  depth, 
and  from  that  they  can  get  all  the  rest.  If  I  am 
going  to  build  a  boat  eighteen  feet  long,  four  feet 
wide,  and  eighteen  inches  deep,  she  would  be  at 
the  forward  frame  three  feet  on  top  ;  aft,  three  feet 
eight  inches ;  middle,  four  feet.  A  line  drawn 
through  these  points  to  the  stem  and  stern  gives 
me  her  shape  on  top  ;  a  depth  and  a  half  forward 
and  a  depth  and  a  quarter  aft  gives  me  her  sheer; 
half  of  her  width  on  top  gives  me  her  shape  at  the 
heads  of  the  floor  timbers.  Then  all  I've  got  to  do 
to  shape  her  bottom  is,  to  lay  off  my  rise,  making 
it  greater  or  less  according  as  I  want  her  full  or 
sharp,  dividing  it  up  on  the  timbers,  till  I  have 
twice  as  much  in  the  forward  floor  timber  as  amid 
ships,  and  a  little  more  than  that  aft.  I  have  got 
the  top  and  bottom  ;  I  can  get  the  shape  of  the  side 
between  those  points  by  my  eye;  if  I  can't  I  must 
be  a  fool."  The  forward  and  after  floor  timbers 
determine  the  shape  of  the  boat  forward  and  aft ;  the 
timbers  after  that  are  V  shaped ;  they  do  not  cross 
the  keel ;  and  all  that  is  necessary  is  to  have  a  true 
taper  to  the  stem  and  stern.  "  I  feel  kind  of  satis 
fied  now ;  there  seems  to  be  some  foundation,  some- 


CHARLIE  PREFIGURES  THE  FUTURE.     173 

tiling  to  go  upon  ;  it  ain't  all  mixed  up  :  now  I 
have  got  all  these  moulds,  it  wouldn't  be  half  the 
work  to  timber  out  another  boat  of  the  same 
dimensions.  Boat-building  is  real  nice  work  after 
you  know  how;  but  to  build  a  vessel  —  that  would 
be  the  best.  Now  'I'll  go  in  swimming,  then  look  at 
my  birds  and  go  and  see  how  my  grafts  come  on." 

The  next  night,  as  he  was  busily  at  work  after 
supper,  getting  out  his  gunwale,  a  well-known 
voice  exclaimed,  — 

"Halloo!  What's  all  this  ?  — steam-box,  boat 
building.  I  guess  Elm  Island  will  be  a  city 
soon." 

"  O,  Joe  !  I'm  so  glad  to  see  you." 

"You  be?  I  thought  you  didn't  like  to  have 
critics  round,  when  you  were  at  work." 

"  O,  yes,  I  do,  ?/o«." 

"Who  timbered  out  that  boat?" 

"I  did." 

"Alone?" 

"Yes,  all  alone;  no  soul  helped  me,  or  told  me 
anything." 

"  Where  did  you  get  .your  moulds  ?  " 

"Took  them  from  the  West  Wind;"  and  ho 
showed  Joe  the  moulds. 

"  Well,   I   never   should   have  thought  of  that 


174    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

way.  I  should  like  to  know  how  you  got  those 
streaks  on,  especially  the  garboards." 

Charlie  showed  him  the  patterns,  and  told  him 
all  about  it,  and  how  terribly  he  was  puzzled. 

"How  long  did  it  take  you  to  get  on  them 
garboards  ?  " 

"Two  days." 

"  I  should  have  thought  it  would  have  taken  you 
a  week.  It  is  done  handsome,  my  boy,"  —  patting 
him  on  the  back;  "  nobody  can  better  that.  But, 
life  of  me,  why  didn't  you  make  a  rule  staff,  and 
take  spilings,  instead  of  going  to  work  in  such  a 
roundabout  way  as  that  ?  You  couldn't  have  done 
it  any  better ;  but  you  could  have  done  it  in  a 
quarter  part  the  time,  and  no  fuss  about  it." 

"  Then,  there's  a  rule  ?  " 

"  To  be  sure  there  is." 

"  What  is  a  rule  staff?  What  do  you  mean  by 
taking  spilings  ?  " 

"  I'll  show  you  by  and  by." 

Charlie  then  told  his  friend  the  discovery  he  had 
made  in  relation  to  the  floor  timbers. 

"That  is  what  carpenters  call  the  dead  rise, 
and  those  middle  timbers,  that  rise  but  little,  are 
called  dead  flats.  Now,  my  little  boat-builder,  I'll 
show  you  how  to  take  spilings.  I  suppose  you 


CHARLIE  PREFIGURES  THE  FUTURE.     175 

wouldn't  bo  willing  to  take  that  garboard  off  again, 
because  taking  the  spilings  of  a,  garboard  is  a  little 
different  from  the  rest." 

"  Yes,  I  would  ;  it  isn't  nailed  fast." 

"It  is  a  little  too  narrow,  though  it  is  put  on  as 
well  as  I  could  do  it." 

Joe  took  one  of  Charlie's  thin  boards,  planed  and 
made  one  end  of  it  as  wide  as  the  end  of  the  streak 
he  was  to  put  on,  and  cut  it  something  near  the 
shape  of  the  stem,  and  of  the  length  he  wanted  his 
plank  to  be  ;  this,  he  told  Charlie,  was  a  rule  staff. 
lie  then  put  the  end  very  near  to  the  rabbet  at 
the  stem,  and  brought  it  along  over  the  bow,  close 
to  the  keel,  just  as  it  naturally  came,  without 
twisting  sidewise,  to  the  timbers,  where  he  in 
tended  to  make  his  butt,  and  fastened  it;  then 
took  the  rule,  and  measured,  at  frequent  distances, 
from  the  outside  edge  of  the  rabbet  at  the  stem,  to 
the  lower  edge  of  the  rule  staff,  till  he  had  gotten 
round  the  sweep ;  then  he  measured  only  at  the 
timbers.  lie  made  a  scratch  at  every  measure 
ment,  and  chalked  down  the  measure  on  the  rule 
staff. 

lie  now  took  the  rule  staff  and  laid  it  on  the 
board  of  which  the  streak  was  to  be  made,  and 
with  the  compass  set  off  all  these  distances,  then 


176    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

took  a  ribband  that  would  bend  edgewise,  put  it 
on  the  compass  pricks,  and  scratched  the  whole 
length  of  the  plank. 

"You  see,"  he  said,  "that  this  rule  staff,  being 
bent  on,  has  followed  exactly  the  twist  of  the  tim 
bers;  so  of  course  this  line  of  pricks,  taken  from  it, 
will  do  the  same,  and  give  the  shape  of  the  edge 
of  the  streak;  that  is  all  the  rule  staff  does;  now 
you  must  measure  the  width  of  your  plank  from 
them.  I  have  made  these  measures  at  the  end 
very  near  together,  because  I  am  working  for  a 
very  particular  body,  and  I  want  my  work  to 
compare." 

He  now  steamed  the  plank  and  put  it  on,  when 
it  fayed  to  a  hair. 

"Now,  Charlie,  before  I  fasten  this  plank,  I 
want  you  to  squint  along  the  edge  of  it." 

"  I  see  a  bunch  on  the  luff  of  the  bow." 

"  Now  look  at  the  counter." 

"It  is  the  same." 

"We  must  take  out  a  little  there ;  I  should  have 
done  it  when  I  lined  the  plank,  but  I  wanted  you 
to  see  it;  the  twist  throws  the  plank  up:  if  you 
could  take  spilings  of  both  edges,  it  would  take 
it  out." 

"How  nice  that  is?   Why  couldn't  I  have  thought 


CHARTJE  PREFIGURES  THE  FUTURE.     177 

of  it  ?  I  might  by  this  time  have  had  the  boat  all 
done  and  in  the  water.  Are  ships'  planks  put  on 
in  this  way  ?  " 

"Yes,  somewhat;  but  they  do  not  have  to  be 
so  particular,  except  at  the  fore  and  after  woods: 
they  line  them  as  crooked  as  they  can,  and  then 
jam  them  down  edgewise  with  wedges;  and  you 
can't  do  that  with  boat  plank,  but  must  cut  to  a 
sixteenth  of  an  inch,  if  you  want  your  work  to 
look  well/' 

"  You  are  very  good,  Joe  ;  now  all  my  difficulties 
are  over  ;  but  I'm  glad  you  didn't  come  before." 

"Why  so?" 

"  Because,  if  you  had  shown  me  about  the  dead 
rise,  I  shouldn't  have  found  it  out  myself.  Joe,  I'll 
tell  you  what  I'm  going  to  do,  if  I  get  this  boat  off." 

"And  she  don't  split  in  two,  you  mean." 

"If  she  works  well,  I'm  iM)in<£  to  make  one  out 

'  O  O 

of  my  own  head,  without  any  model  to  work 
from." 

"I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Charlie:  there  will  be 
some  staling  when  you  appear  out  in  this  craft." 

"  I  guess  there  will  ;  they  all  think  what 
happened  to  the  West  AVind  sickened  and  dis 
couraged  me;  but  I  reel-on  they'll  find  out  to  the 
contrary.  I  do  hope  that  iio-ther  Uncle  Isaac,  nor 
12 


178    THE    YOTJXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

Fred,  your  Hen,  Captain  Rhines,  nor  any  of  them, 
will  find  it  out  till  I  come  out.  Don't  tell;  will 
you,  Joe?" 

"  You  will  soon  finish  her  now ;  you  can  take  a 
spruce  pole,  split  it  in  two  with  a  saw,  and  it  will 
make  a  grand  gunwale :  that's  what  they  use  in 
Nova  Scotia." 

"  A  spruce  pole  !  I  guess  I  shall.  I'll  have  a  nice 
piece  of  oak,  planed  and  rubbed  with  dog-fish  skin. 
Do  you  know  what  I  want  to  do,  Joe  ?  " 

"  It  would  be  hard  guessing  ;  you  have  so  many 
projects  in  your  head." 

"I  want  two  things,  and  then  I  shall  be 
satisfied." 

"  Then  you  are  more  easily  satisfied  than  most 
folks." 

"  I  want  to  build  a  vessel.     Think  I  ever  can  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  you  can  learn  to  build  a  vessel  as  well  as 
a  boat;  it's  pretty  much  the  same  thing  on  a  larger 
scale.  But  what  is  the  other  thing  ?  " 

"I  want  to  own  a  piece  of  land:  it's  what  none 
of  my  folks  ever  did,  to  own  a  piece  of  land  ;  a 
man  must  be  rich  to  own  a  piece  of  land  in 
England." 

"  Well,  you  can  certainly  do  that,  for  you  have 
got  money  of  your  own,  and  can  buy  wild  laud 


CHARLIE    PREFIGURES    THE    FUTURE.  179 

for  ten  or  fifteen  cents  an  acre,  and  clear  it 
yourself." 

"That's  what  I  mean  to  do,  when  I  get  my 
money  back  from  Fred,  and  find  some  place  that 
just  fills  my  eye,  right  by  the  water.  I  wouldn't 
take  the  gift  of  a  piece  of  land  that  the  salt  water 
didn't  wash.  Then  I  must  have  a  brook ;  I  couldn't 
live  without  a  brook." 

"  Nor  I  either :  by  the  way,  we  are  going  to  run 
to  the  westward  and  fish  off  the  cape  ;  I  think 
very  likely  I  shall  run  into  Portland,  and  see 
John." 

"Then  I'll  write  him  a  letter;  he  don't  know 
anything  about  this  boat,  for  I  hadn't  thought 
much  about  building  her  when  I  saw  him  last." 

Charlie  finished  his  boat,  putting  four  knees  to 
each  of  the  middle  thwarts,  and  two  to  both  the 
forward  and  after  one.  lie  was  resolved  this  boat 
should  not  split  in  two.  At  the  bow  and  stern  he 
decked  her  over,  and  made  a  splendid  locker  for 
ward  and  aft,  with  doors,  and  in  which  he  could 
put  powder,  fishing-lines,  and  whatever  he  wished 
to  take  with  him.  Under  the  middle  thwart  he 
made  a  locker,  just  the  shape  of  a  gun,  with  a  door 
hung  on  wire  hinges,  so  as  to  keep  his  gun  dry. 
He  was  already  provided  with  spars,  sails,  rudder, 


180    THE    YOTTXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

and  oars,  ns  this  boat  was  just  the  size  of  the  "West 
Wind.  His  paints  were  all  gone,  except  a  little 
vermilion  that  the  English  captain  had  given  him, 
and  there  was  none  at  the  store.  Indeed,  there 
was  seldom  anything  in  the  form  of  paint  at  the 
store,  except  lampblack,  and  red  or  yellow  ochre, 
and  they  were  used  only  on  the  inside  of  houses, 
or  on  vessels,  and  generally  with  fish  oil.  It  was  a 
rare  thing  that  white  lead  or  linseed  oil  was  found 
there,  it  being  so  little  called  for.  Captain  Rhines's 
house  was  the  only  one  in  the  place  that  was 
painted  outside.  He  and  some  others  had  one 
room  painted  lead-color;  the  general  custom  being 
to  keep  the  wralls  and  floors  white,  and  scour  them. 
But  Charlie  was  determined  to  have  paint  for  this 
boat,  and  sent  to  Portland  by  Joe  for  both  paint 
and  oil. 

The  iron-work  of  the  other  boat  was  suitable  for 
this,  and  she  was  now  calked  and  all  done  except 
painting.  Charlie  had  oiled  the  planks  to  keep 
them  from  renting,  as  he  had  no  paint  to  prime 
her.  How  he  longed  for  that  paint  to  come !  In 
deed,  he  thought  so  much  about  it,  that  none  of 
his  usual  sources  of  enjoyment  seemed  to  afford 
him  any  gratification,  or  to  occupy  his  thoughts. 
The  flowers  were  passed  by  unheeded,  the  song  of 


CHARLIE  PREFIGURES  THE  FUTURE.     181 

birds  won  no  regard,  and  even  the  baby  received 
slight  attention.  lie  enjoyed  himself  most  when 
occupied  about  that  which  was  in  some  way  con 
nected  with  the  boat.  lie  passed  a  good  many 
moments  in  thinking  how  he  should  paint  her. 
As  she  was  altogether  too  precious  to  lie  aground 
even  in  the  quiet  harbor  of  Elm  Island,  he  pre- 
pp'.'cd  a  mooring  for  her.  He  borrowed  Uncle 
Sam's  drill,  and  made  a  round  hole  in  a  large  11  at 
rock,  then  dug  up  a  small  tree  by  the  roots,  cut  it 
off  about  fifteen  feet  from  the  roots,  removed  the 
bark,  shaved  the  trunk  smooth,  ran  it  through  the 
hole  in  the  rock,  till  the  roots  prevented  it  from 
going  farther,  and  then  put  it  off  in  the  harbor. 
Over  this  pole,  standing  upright  in  the  water,  he 
slipped  an  oak  plank,  which  floated  on  the  water, 
and  travelled  around  the  pole  as  the  wind  veered, 
and  slipped  up  and  down  on  it  as  the  tide  rose  and 
fell.  To  this  traveller  he  fastened  a  rope,  with  an 
eye-splice  in  it  to  slip  over  the  boat's  stem,  and 
then  he  conl  i  go  to  her  in  the  Twilight. 

When  all  these  preparations  were  made,  he 
began  to  think  of  a  name,  lie  didn't  like  to  give 
her  the  name  of  the  old  boat,  because  he  thought 
she  had  been  unlucky,  and  it  would  revive  un 
pleasant  memories. 


182   THE    YOUNG"  SHIP-BUILDERS    OP   ELM   ISLAND. 

"There's  only  one  thing  about  her  I  should  like 
otherwise,"  said  he.  "  I  wish  she  was  pink-sterned 
and  lap-streaked.  These  square  sterns  look 
chopped  off  to  me.  I  think  the  eye  requires  that 
both  ends  should  be  alike.  I  wonder  how  a  fish 
would  look  with  a  square  stern  ?  or  a  tree  with  a 
square  top?  Well,  I'll  build  another,  when  I  shan't 
be  tied  to  the  dimensions  of  a  log,  and  can  h  ve 
her  wider  and  deeper,  with  plenty  of  room  to  knock 
about  in.  This  boat  will  be  like  old  Captain 
Scott's  boat,  in  Halifax,  that  was  so  small'  and  full 
of  trumpery,  he  said  there  wasn't  room  enough  in 
her  to  swear.  Well,  I  don't  want  to  swear.  I 
think  it's  real  mean.  So  there'll  be  room  enough 
for  me." 

All  at  once  he  thought  of  something  to  divert 
attention  and  occupy  his  leisure  time,  which  was, 
to  study  surveying.  The  science  of  angles  was 
congenial  to  his  mechanical  tastes,  and  he  was 
soon  so  absorbed  in  the  pursuit  as  well  nigh  to 
forget  the  paint,  for  which  he  had  been  longing. 
The  evenings  were  growing  longer,  and  he  had  a 
competent  instructor  in  Ben.  Ben  also  had  an 
other  scholar,  Seth  Warren,  who  had  come  over 
to  the  island  to  study  navigation. 

"Mother,"  said  Charlie,  one  night,  as  they  were 


"  CHARLIE    PREFIGURES    THE    FUTURE.  183 

milking,  "  do  you  suppose  there  will  ever  be  a  ves 
sel  built  in  this  bay?" 

"  I  don't  know.     Not  in  my  day,  I  guess." 

"Why  not,  mother?  Didn't  father  build  the 
Ark  on  this  island?  and  couldn't  he,  and  Captain 
Rhinos,  and  Uncle  Isaac  build  a  vessel  if  they  had 
a  mind  to?  " 

"Why,  Charlie,  the  people  here  have  hardly  got 
their  land  cleared  up,  and  got  to  living  themselves. 
There  are  no  carpenters  but  Joe  Griflin  and  Robert 
Yelf,  no  blacksmith  but  Peter  Brock,  and  he's 
worn  out.  Besides,  there's  nothing  for  a  vessel  to 
do,  except  to  carry  wood  to  Salem  or  Boston,  or  to 
fish.  Your  father  and  Captain  Rhines  had  rather 
put  their  money  into  a  vessel  with  Mr.  Welch." 

"Mother,  carpenters  and  blacksmiths  go  wher 
ever  there  is  work.  I'm  sure  there's  lumber  and 
spars  enough  here,  and  vessels  come  here  to  load. 
I  don't  see  why  a  vessel  couldn't  be  built  here, 
where  there's  timber  to  build  her,  and  lumber  to 
load  her,  and  take  it  to  the  West  Indies,  and  get 
molasses  and  sugar  to  sell  in  Boston  or  Portland, 
just  as  Captain  Rhines  did  the  cargo  of  the  Con 
gress.  I  heard  him  say  he  had  half  a  mind  to 
keep  her,  load,  and  run  her." 

"I   never  saw  such  a  boy  as  you  are,  Charlie! 


184    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

You're  always  planning  out  something.  What  in 
the  world  put  this  in  your  head,  just  now?" 

"Because  I  was  thinking  what  a  sight  of  ducks, 
chickens,  geese,  and  turkeys  there  are  around  this 
barn.  Why,  you  can't  step,  hardly,  without  tread 
ing  on  a  hen  or  a  duck  !  I  can't  hardly  pitch  a 
fork  full  of  hay  oft'  the  mow  without  disturbing  a 
hen's  nest!  And  only  see  the  beets,  onions,  and 
potatoes  there  are!  I  was  thinking,  if  there  was 
only  some  vessel  here  going  to  the  West  Indies, 
what  a  slap  you  and  I  could  make  by  sending  a 
venture,  as  we  did  in  the  Ark!  Why,  only  think 
how  much  butter  you  could  send!  Then,  I 
thought,  here  is  Seth  Warren,  learning  navigation. 
He  ought  to  have  a  vessel  built  for  him  here, 
instead  of  going  to  Wiscasset ;  and  Joe  Griffin  and 
Robert  Yelf  ought  to  help  build  her,  instead  of 
going  out  of  town  to  work,  as  they  often  do." 

"  Well,  Charlie,  you  were  born  twenty-five  or 
thirty  years  too  soon  !  Such  things  may  do  to 
talk  about,  but  they  can't  be  done  in  the  woods,  in 
a  new  country." 

"Captain  Rhines  was  born  and  brought  up  in 
the  woods;  but  he's  been  all  over  the  world,  for 
all  that." 

"Well,  Charlie,  you'd  better  leave  alone  build- 


CHARLIE    PREFIGURES    TUG    FUTURE.  185 

ing    castles  in   the  air,   and   take   that    calf  away. 

lie's  biting  the  cow's  teats  all  to  pieces." 

"I  tell  you,  mother,  there  will  be  a  vessel  built 

in  this  bay  before  five  years.     You  mark  my  words 

for  it." 

"Perhaps  there  may — a  wood-coaster." 

"No;  a  vessel  to  go  to  the  West  Indies." 

"  Well,  when  I  see  it,  I'll  believe  it,  and  I'll  send 

a  venture  in  her." 


186   THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

BETTER   LET    SLEEPING   DOGS    ALONE. 

WHEN  John  Rhines  went  into  the  blacksmith's 
shop,  he  found  two  other  boys  there,  apprentices, 
who  had  been  at  work  some  time.  They  all 
boarded  with  the  master,  as  was  the  custom  at 
that  day. 

It  was  customary  for  the  boys  to  do  some  chores 
about  the  house,  cut  and  bring  in  the  wood,  and  on 
Monday  mornings,  the  water  for  the  washing.  It 
was  also  the  wont  of  all  mechanics,  at  eleven  and 
four  o'clock,  to  have  a  glass  of  liquor,  and  most  of 
them  had  a  luncheon  —  crackers  and  salt  fish. 
Then  the  men  on  the  roofs  came  down  from  their 
ladders,  carpenters  laid  aside  their  axes,  and  ma 
sons  their  trowels,  and  all  set  down  to  "  wet  their 
eye,"  as  they  called  it.  Thus  apprentices  were 
early  initiated  into  the  practice  of  dram-drinking. 

The  names  of  these  boys — both  of  whom  were 
older  than  John,  and  one  of  them  nearly  out  of  his 
time  —  were  Sam  Glacier  and  William  Lewis. 


BETTER  LET  SLEEPING  DOGS  ALOXE.    187 

The  younger  of  these,  Sam  Glacier,  had  sprung 
from  a  very  poor,  low  family,  was  of  a  jealous, 
suspicious  disposition,  didn't  love  work,  was  care 
less,  and  rather  slow  to  learn. 

Sam  was  very  glad  when  Rhines  came,  because 
he  knew  that  the  chores  that  he  had  been  com 
pelled  to  do  would  devolve  upon  Khines;  that  he 
should  be  put  behind  the  anvil,  and  Rhines  would 
have  to  blow  and  strike  for  him.  But  in  other  re 
spects  he  did  not  like.  John.  Indeed,  it  was  im 
possible  that  there  could  be  any  friendship  between 
two  natures  so  entirely  opposite.  Sam  despised 
John  because  he  didn't  swear,  and  would  work 
whether  Mr.  Starrett  was  in  the  shop  or  not. 
John  despised  Sam  because  he  did  swear,  and 
would  sit  ou  the  anvil  whenever  his  master's  back 
was  turned.  Sam  despised  John  because  he 
knelt  down  and  said  his  prayers  when  he  went 
to  bed,  and  wouldn't  drink  liquor  at  eleven  and 
four  o'clock.  John  despised  Sam  because  he  lay 
down  just  like  a  hog. 

Sam  spent  his  Sundays  strolling  about  the 
Avharves,  sailing  in  boats,  or  getting  together  other 
boys,  and  spending  the  time  in  smoking  and  card- 
playing,  and  disliked  John  because  he  would  not 
go  with  him,  and  do  as  he  did.  John  had  not 


188    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

been  in  the  shop  a  month  before  Sam  saw  that  Mr. 
Starrett  liked  him  a  great  deal  better  than  himself, 
and  didn't  hesitate  to  show  it. 

Sam,  imputing  this  to  the  fact  that  John  was  the 
son  of  a  rich  and  he  of  a  poor  man,  was  embittered 
against  both  him  and  his  master.  It  was  not, 
however,  for  any  such  reason.  Mr.  Starrett  was  a 
rugged,  driving,  resolute,  generous-hearted  man. 
Indeed,  he  was  something  of  the  turn  of  Captain 
Rhines,  whom  he  considered  one  of  the  finest  of 
men. 

He  wanted  boys  to  work,  and  work  hard,  as  he 
did  himself;  but  he  fed  them  well,  treated  them 
kindly,  did  all  in  his  power  to  put  them  ahead  as 
fast  as  they  developed  capacity,  and,  when  the 
work  permitted,  gave  them  a  few  hours  to  them 
selves,  and  would  let  them  have  iron  and  coal  to 
do  any  little  job,  and  make  any  little  thing  to  sell , 
to  boys  or  the  neighbors. 

The  facts  in  the  matter  were  just  these:  If  Mr. 
Starrett  sent  Sam  on  board  a  vessel  to  back  out 
bolts,  or  to  drive  them  in,  or  to  take  the  measure  of 
anything,  he  would  be  gone  at  least  twice  as  long 
as  was  needful,  and  very  likely  come  back  with  the 
wrong  dimensions;  and  after  the  work  was  done,  it 
would  all  have  to  be  done  over  again,  and  perhaps 


BETTER    LET    SLEEPING    DOGS    ALOXE.          189 

the  vessel  all  ready  for  sea  except  that.  lie  would 
neglect  to  fore-lock  a  bolt.  It  would  draw  in  a 
gale  of  wind,  and  cause  serious  damage.  But  if 
he  sent  John,  it  was  all  done  well,  and  in  the  short 
est  time.  There  was  another  reason.  lie  forged  a 
great  many  anchors  for  fishermen,  which  was  heavy 
work,  and  required  a  great  deal  of  striking  with  a 
large  sledge;  and  John  always  struck  with  a  good 
will,  was  never  tired,  and  would  draw  the  iron, 
more  at  one  blow  than  Sam,  or  even  Lewis,  at  two. 
Xo  wonder  then  that  Mr.  Starrett  liked  John  best, 
put  him  ahead,  and  gave  him  jobs,  that,  in  t!:e 
usual  course  of  things,  belonged  to  Sam.  It  was 
just  the  sarfie  at  the  anvil  as  everywhere  else. 
The  boy  that  docs  the  best  for  his  employer  docs 
the  best  for  himself. 

But  the  matter  did  not  stop  even  here.  It  was 
the  same  in  the  house.  Mrs.  Starrett  and  Betty, 
the  maid,  conceived  the  strongest  liking  for  John, 
and  for  equally  substantial  reasons  as  his  master. 
If  asked  to  do  anything,  he  did  it  willingly,  and  on 
this  very  account  was  more  lightly  taxed. 

"I  hate  to  ask  John  to  wait  on  me,"  said  Mrs. 
Starrett,  "because  he  does  it  so  willingly;  for  I 
know  he  works  hard,  and  I  had  rather  do  it  my 
self:" 


190    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP    ELM   ISLAND. 

"  He's  a  gentleman,  every  inch  of  him,"  replied 
Betty.  "He  wasn't  brought  up  on  a  dunghill, — 
that's  plain  to  be  seen.  I  often  bring  water  myself 
rather  than  ask  him.  But  as  for  that  Glacier,  I 
made  him  wait  on  me  by  inches,  he  was  so  hoggish 
and  lazy.  If  he  gave  me  any  of  his  impudence,  I 
went  straight  to  his  master  with  the  tale." 

It  chanced  one  day  that  John  was  absent  at 
dinner-time,  his  master  having  sent  him  to  the 
wharf.  A  plate  was  set  on  for  Sam  that  was 
cracked,  and  had  a  piece  taken  out  of  the  edge. 
He  was  so  put  out  about  it  that  he  went  off  with 
out  his  dinner. 

Mrs.  Starrett  told  Betty  to  put  it  on  for  John 
when  he  came.  * 

"I'll  do  no  such  thing!  I'll  not  put  him  below 
that  growling  creature ! " 

"  Do  as  I  tell  you,  Betty." 

When  John  came  in,  he  sat  down  and  ate  his 
dinner,  neither  noticing  nor  caring  whether  the 
plate  was  cracked  or  not. 

"  There,"  said  Mrs.  Starrett,  "  what  do  you  think 
of  that?" 

"That  is  just  what  I  should  expect,"  said  Mr. 
Starrett,  who  happened  to  be  in  the  house.  "If 
you  want  a  boy  that's  difficult,  always  growling, 


BETTER  LET  SLEEPIXG  DOGS  ALOXE.    191 

never  satisfied,  and  all  the  time  afraid  he  shall  be 
imposed  upon,  get  one  that  never  had  any  bringing 
up,  nor  half  enough  to  eat  at  home." 

There  \vas  another  circumstance  that  tended  to 
foster,  even  in  the  mind  of  Lewis,  who  was  a  very 
different  boy  from  Glacier,  a  dislike  to  John  ;  they 
were  bound  to  serve  a  regular  apprenticeship,  John 
was  not;  and  it  was  plain  to  see,  that  witli  his 
ambition  and  capacity  he  would  get  the  trade  and 
be  working  for  wages  long  before  they  were  out 
of  their  time. 

The  boys  had  but  very  little  leisure  ;  men  worked 
then  upon  no  ten-hour  system,  but  from  sun  to 
sun. 

Ship-carpenters  worked  till  there  was  just  light 
enough  left  to  see  to  pick  up  their  tools  ;  and  black 
smiths,  during  short  days  in  winter,  worked  in  the 
evenings.  When  they  happened  to  have  any  lei 
sure,  Lewis,  with  Glacier  and  others,  pitched  quoits, 
jumped,  and  wrestled,  or  played  pull-up,  or  ball,  on 
a  green  plat,  behind  the  shop.  John  was  not 
invited  to  go  with  them  ;  they  considered  him 
strait-laced,  stuck  up,  and  longed  to  take  him 
down  a  peg  or  two. 

One  day,  as  they  were  going  down  a  descending 
piece  of  ground,  on  their  way  to  dinner,  Lewis 


192    THE    YOL'XG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

proposed  to  Glacier  to  trip  him  up.  Glacier  ac 
cordingly  thrust  his  foot  between  John's  legs, 
thinking  to  trip  and  throw  him  down  hill ;  but  he 
did  not  accomplish  his  purpose.  John  then,  putting 
one  hand  on  his  shoulder,  apparently  with  very 
little  effort,  sent  him  head  foremost  down  the  hill, 
and  skinned  his  nose  and  chin  in  the  fall.  John  was 
so  quiet,  free  from  all  pretensions,  amiable  in  his 
disposition,  didn't  swear,  said  his  prayers,  and  went 
to  meeting,  that  although  they  knew  his  strength, 
they  thought  it  impossible  for  him  to  know  any 
thing  about  wrestling  or  scuffling ;  accordingly,  after 
work  that  evening,  they  invited  him  to  go  behind 
the  shop  and  wrestle. 

"You  can  throw  him,  Sam;  if  you  can't,  I  can," 
said  Lewis ;  "  he  is  strong  to  strike  with  a  sledge  ; 
but  he  don't  know  anything  about  wrestling." 

Never  were  boys  more  mistaken :  he  flung 
Glacier  and  Lewis  the  moment  he  took  hold  of 
them,  and  every  apprentice  they  could  bring ;  and 
the  worst  of  it  was,  he  didn't  seem  to  think  it 
worth  crowing  over,  or  that  he  had  found  worthy 
antagonists.  Mr.  StMrrett  was  mightily  pleased 
when  it  came  to  his  ears. 

"I've  twigged  their  motions,"  he  said;  "they've 
been  itching  this  four  weeks  to  impose  upon  John, 


BETTER    LET    SLEEPING    DOGS    ALONE.          193 

just  because  lie's  a  better  boy  than  they  are  ;  they've 
found  out  now  it's  better  to  let  a  sleeping  dog 
alone  ;  better  not  meddle  with  anybody  that's  got 
any  Rhines  blood  in  them.  I  wonder  what  they 
would  think  of  Ben,  or  this  boy's  grandfather.  O, 
lie  was  an  awful  strong  man.  I  remember  him 
when  I  was  a  small  boy;  he  looked  to  me  like  a 
tree  walking  about." 

A  short  time  after  this  circumstance,  Mr.  Star- 
j'ett  said  to  Glacier,  — 

"  Sam,  you've  been  with  me  more  than  two  years. 
I've  done  my  best- to  put  you  forward  and  learn 
you;  but  you  are  lazy  and  careless,  and  don't  care 
whether  you  learn  or  not.  Rhines  has  learned 
more  in  four  months  than  you  have  in  the  whole 
two  years.  I  shall  now  put  him  behind  the  anvil, 
and  you  must  blow  and  strike  for  him." 

Sam  was  grouty,  and  did  all  in  his  power  to 
plague  John,  and  spoil  his  work.  One  day,  when 
John  was  at  work  upon  something  where  it  was 
necessary  to  be  accurate,  he  irritated  him  beyond 
the  limits  of  forbearance. 

"Glacier,"  said  John,  "if  you  keep  on  striking 
after  I  make  the  signal  to  stop,  and  if^  when  yon 
take  anything  out  of  the-  fire  to  weld,  you  hold  it 

askew,  and  don't  keep  it  in  its  place  till    it's  stuck, 

i  ° 
lo 


194    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

I'll  lay  you  across  this  anvil,  and  put  the  hammer 
handle  on  you  till  you  see  stars." 

This  settled  the  matter.  Sam  did  very  well  after 
that,  till  he  ran  away,  and  a  better  boy  came  in  his 
place.  John  now  went  on  apace. 

Just  before  noon,  one  day,  he  was  strapping  a 
dead-eye,  when  Joe  Griffin  came  into  the  shop.  If 
ever  anybody  received  a  hearty  welcome,  Joe  did 
from  John. 

"  How  are  father  and  mother?" 

"First  rate  ;  they  are  all  well  at  home,  and  on  the 
island.  Uncle  Isaac  and  our  Henry  are  with  me 
in  the  schooner,"  replied  Joe,  by  way  of  sum 
ming  up. 

"What  is  Charlie  doing?" 

"  O,  Charlie,  he's  in  kingdom  come  ;  he's  put  the 
nub  on  now." 

"  Do  tell ;  what  is  it  ?  " 

"  You  mustn't  mention  it  aboard  the  schooner ; 
but  he  has  taken  moulds  from  the  old  boat  that 
you  and  he  split  in  two,  timbered  out  and  planked 
up  a  boat  of  the  same  size,  and  I'm  going  to  get 
the  paint  to  paint  her ;  then  he's  coming  out,  I  tell 
you  ;  and  here's  a  letter  from  him." 

"  O,  how  I  wish  I  could  be  there,  to  go  with 
him !  but  the  boy  time,  with  Charlie  and  me,  is 


BETTER   LET    SLEEPING   DOGS    ALONE.         195 

about  over ;  we  have  got  to  put  our  bones  to  it 
now.  How  is  Fred  Williams  getting  along?" 

"  First  rate ;  has  all  the  fish  he  can  make,  and 
buys  a  good  many.  So  they've  put  you  behind 
the  anvil,  and  set  you  to  strapping  dead-eyes. 
Pretty  good  job  for  a  boy  who  has  worked  no 
longer  than  you  have  ;  they  don't  set  bunglers  to 
strapping  dead-eyes." 

It  was  now  twelve  o'clock ;  Mr.  Starrett  invited 
Joe  to  dinner,  and  gave  John  the  afternoon  to 
spend  with  his  friend,  and  they  went  on  board  the 
Perseverance.  John  sat  up  half  the  night  to  make 
an  anchor  for  Charlie's  boat,  to  send  by  Joe  ;  he 
also  made  some  iron  bow  pins  for  Uncle  Isaac  and 
Ben,  and  an  eel  spear  for  his  father. 


196   THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEES    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

VICTORY    AT    LAST. 

THE  sun  had  nearly  reached  the  meridian,  and 
the  wind,  due  north,  was  of  moderate  strength ;  the 
time,  the  last  week  of  August. 

Henry  Griffin  had  concluded  to  stay  at  home  for 
one  trip,  and  was  fishing  with  Sam  Hadlock,  in  a 
canoe,  about  three  miles  to  the  southward  of  Elm 
Island.  Tempted  by  the  fineness  of  the  day,  a 
large  number  of  the  neighbors  were  fishing  near 
them.  Among  the  rest,  Uncle  Sam,  Captain 
Rhines,  and  Uncle  Isaac,  all  in  Captain  Rhines's 
big  canoe. 

"  What's  that,  Hen,  coming  down  the  bay  ?  " 

«  Whereabouts  ?  " 

"Why,  off  the  sou' west  pint  of  Elm  Island." 

"A  canoe." 

"  It  don't  look  like  a  canoe  to  me." 

In  a  short  time  Sam  said,  — 

"  That's  not  a  canoe ;  she's  got  two  sails,  and  is 
coming  down  'wing  and  wing;'  there's  no  canoe 
round  here  with  two  sails." 


VICTORY    AT    LAST.  197 

Henry  now  viewed  the  strange  craft  more  nar 
rowly  as  she  came  nearer.  At  length  he  said,  — 

"  That's  not  a  canoe  ;  she's  painted,  and  has  got 
a  bowsprit.  I  know  what  it  is.  Charlie  has  built 
another  boat,  and  he's  showing  off  in  her.  That's 
it ;  I  know  it  is.  Good  on  his  head." 

"  I  thought  he'd  give  up  after  the  other  one  split 
in  two." 

"Give  up  !  Them  words  ain't  in  his  dictionary.  If 
you  want  Charlie  to  do  a  thing,  just  trig  the  wheels, 
and  tell  him  he  can't.  I  know  that's  it,  for  I've 
suspected  it  all  along." 

"What  made  you  suspect  it?" 

"  A  good  many  things.  In  the  first  place,  I 
overheard  him  say  to  John,  Avhen  he  came  out  of 
the  water,  the  day  they  got  spilt,  '  If  I  live,  I'll  build 
a  boat  that  won't  split  in  two;'  and  I  know  he 
never  gives  up  anything.  Another  thing,  he  and  I 
have  always  been  very  thick:  whenever  we've  met, 
lie  has  always  urged  me  to  come  over  to  the  island  ; 
but  this  summer  lie  has  never  asked  me  once. 
Then  the  last  time  we  were  at  Portland,  there  was 
some  privacy  going  on  between  John  and  Joe, 
that  they  didn't  mean  I  should  know  ;  there  was  ti 
great  long  box  that  went  to  Elm  Island.  I  know 
there  was  paint  in  it  by  the  smell,  and  it  was  paint 


198    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

« 

for  that  boat;  that's  what  it  was,  though  I  don't 
see  what  it  was  so  long  for." 

The  strange  craft  was  now  in  full  view,  coining 
clown  before  the  wind  and  tide,  like  a  race  horse. 
There  was  evidently  but  one  person  in  her,  and  he 
was  hidden  by  the  sails.  Presently  the  helmsman 
altered  his  course  a  little,  and  jibing  the  mainsail, 
exposed  himself  to  view. 

"  It's  Charlie,"  cried  Henry.  "  O,  ain't  he  a 
happy  boy  this  minute  ?  See  how  straight  he  sits  ; 
and  isn't  she  a  beauty  ?  How  long  she  is  !  tremen 
dous  long ! " 

"  How  handsome  she's  painted  ! "  said  Sam.  "  I 
wish. he  would  come  here." 

"  He  will ;  he's  going  alongside  of  Captain  Rhinos, 
and  then  he'll  come  here." 

But,  contrary  to  Henry's  opinion,  Charlie  kept  to 
leeward  of  the  whole  fleet  of  canoes,  and  stood 
right  out  to  sea.  He  then  hauled  his  wind,  and 
brought  both  his  sails  on  one  side,  Sam  said,  "  to 
show  himself" 

"  Yes,"  was  the  reply ;  "  and  he'll  be  coming 
back  soon,  to  show  what  the  boat  can  do.  Here 
he  comes,  Sam,"  shouted  Henry. 

After  running  out  to  sea  about  half  a  mile, 
Charlie  hauled  aft  his  sheets,  set  his  jib,  and  brought 
her  on  a  wind. 


VICTOUY    AT    LAST.  199 

"Look  there,  lieu!     See  her  go  right  straight 
to  windward!     That  jib  is  what  takes  my  eye!" 
"How  is  he  ejoing  to  handle  three  sails  alone, 

o          o 

when  he  tacks,.!  should  like  to  know?" 

"lie's  got  the  jib-sheets  to  lead  aft  to  where  he 
sits.  I've  often  seen  that  done." 

"  I  think  it's  queer  that  our  Joe,  Captain  Rhines, 
and  Uncle  Isaac,  who  can  do  anything  they  are  a 
mind  to,  should  never  have  built  a  boat,  but  always 
went  about  in  these  dug-outs,  —  enough  to  wear  a 
man's  life  out  to  pull  'era." 

"  What  in  the  world  is  he  doing  now,  Hen  ? 
He's  hauled  down  his  jib,  and  taken  in  his  main 
sail." 

"  He's  going  to  show  what  she'll  do  under  a 
foresail." 

"  Look  !  He's  putting  his  helm  down  !  If  she'll 
go  about  in  this  chop  of  a  sea,  without  help  from 
tin  oar,  under  a  foresail,  she'll  do  more  than  I  think 
she  will." 

"There,  she's  about,  by  jingo!" 

"The  Perseverance  couldn't  beat  that,  Hen,  and 
she  carries  sail  well,  too;  but  then  he's  got  a  good 
deal  of  ballast  in  her,  by  the  looks." 

"She  is  so  crooked,  and  there  is  so  much  of 
her  out  of  water,  that  he  can  carry  sail  hard  on 


200    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

her.     Sam,  I'll  have  that  boat,  if  it  costs  all  I've 
earned  this  summer  to  buy  her." 

"There  goes  up  his  mainsail  and  jib!  He  has 
let  us  see  what  she  will  do." 

"  Yes,  he  knows  very  well  that  Captain  Rhirfes, 
and  we,  and  Uncle  Isaac  are  watching  him." 
.  "The  captain  will  buy  that  boat,  Hen.  She'll 
just  take  his  fancy.  What  a  nice  thing  she  would 
be  for  him  when  he  wants  to  run  over  to  see 
Ben!" 

"No,  he  won't,  Sam;  for  we  will  follow  Charlie 
home,  and  if  money  will  buy  her,  I'll  have  her." 

"  I  don't  believe  he'll  sell  her,  at  any  rate  till  he 
has  shown  her  round  a  little.  I'm  sure  I  wouldn't 
if  I  had  a  boat  like  that.  I  guess  you  and  Captain 
Rhines  will  both  have  to  wait  till  she's  an  old  story. 
He'll  want  John  and  Fred  to  have  a  sail  in  her 
before  he  sells  her." 

Charlie  soon  beat  up  alongside  Captain  Rhines, 
then  came  alongside  Henry.  When  he  was  within 
a  few  yards,  he  hauled  aft  his  main-sheet,  flowed 
his  fore-sheet,  hauled  his  jib  to  windward,  put  his 
tiller  hard  down  in  the  notch-board,  and  she  lay  to, 
just  like  a  vessel,  while  he  leaned  over  the  gun 
wale,  and  talked  with  Henry  and  Sam.  When  he 
had  shown  them  how  she  would  lie  to,  Henry 


VICTORY    AT    LAST.  201 

flung  him  a  rope,  and  the  boat  being  made  fast  to 
the  canoe,  they  had  an  opportunity  to  inspect  her. 

"Charlie,  will  you  sell  this  boat?"  asked  Henry. 

"  I  don't  know.     I  guess  not." 

"  Yes,  you  will,  to  me." 

Charlie's  taste  had  become  somewhat  chastened 
since  he  made  the  Twilight  and  West  Wind. 
They  rejoiced  in  painted  ports,  and  all  varieties 
of  stripes  and  colors,  but  this  boat  was  quite  in 
contrast.  She  was  bright-green  to  the  water-line, 
white  above,  with  a  narrow  vermilion  bead  on  top. 
Inside,  she  was  a  straw-color  up  to  the  rising, 
above  that  blue  —  not  a  lead-color,  made  by  mixing 
white  lead  and  lampblack  —  but  blue.  The  spars 
were  white,  the  blades  of  the  oars  green,  the  rest 
white. 

"Charlie,  who  told  you  how  to  build  this  boat?" 

"Nobody.  After  I  had  her  almost  done,  Joe 
told  me  how  to  take  spilings." 

"'•Wings  of  the  Morning]  "  said  Henry,  looking 
at  the  stern.  "What  a  singular  name!  What 
made  you  think  of  that  name,  Charlie?" 

"  I'll  tell  you,  Henry.  I  had  been  thinking  for 
some  time  what  I  should  call  her,  and  one  morn 
ing  I  went  out  just  at  sunrise.  I  stood  on  the 
door-stone,  and  looked  off"  in  the  bay.  The  water 


202    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

was  as  smooth  as  glass.  There  was  an  eagle  sitting 
on  the  edge  of  his  nest  on  the  big  pine.  They  are 
not  shy  of  me  at  all,  for  I  am  very  often  up  in  the 
tree,  and  feed  them.  By  and  by  he  pitched  off, 
and  came  sailing  along  slowly,  moving  his  great 
wings,  just  clearing  the  ridge-pole  of  the  house,  and 
close  to  me.  While  I  watched  him,  this  came 
right  into  my  head.  I  couldn't  get  it  out ;  so  I  put 
it  on  the  boat." 

"  Charlie,  what  was  in  that  long  box  we  brought 
down  in  the  schooner?" 

"  Paint  to  paint  this  boat,  and  putty  and  oil." 

"  I  thought  so.  But  what  was  the  need  of  so 
long  a  box  ?  " 

"To  hold  this,"  holding  up  the  anchor.  "John 
made  it,  and  for  this  boat,  while  you  were  there." 

The  canoes  now  began  to  run  in.  Charlie  made 
sail,  and  soon  left  them  all  astern,  tugging  away  at 
their  oars  against  wind  and  ebb  tide.  He"  had 
been  at  home  a  long  time,  —  indeed,  it  was  after 
supper,  —  when  Henry  and  Sam  came  into  the 
cove. 

"Charlie,"  said  Henry t  "I  shall  never  pull  a 
canoe  any  more.  I  must  have  that  boat,  for  I  am 
going  to  fish  a  good  deal  this  fall.  What  will  you 
take  for  her?" 


VICTORY    AT    LAST.  203 

"I  don't  want  to  sell  her.     I  haven't  hardly  been 

in  her  myself." 

"  AATell,  there's  time  enough  to  talk  about  that." 
"  Come  to  the  house,  and  get  some  supper.    You 

won't  2:0  from  .here  to-night." 

o  o 

After  supper,  Henry  repeated  his  request  for  the 
boat,  adding,  "You  don't  want  her,  Charlie.  You 
only  built  her  to  see  what  you  could  do,  and  can 
build  another.  You  are  no  fisherman  ;  but  I  want 
her  to  catch  fish  in  to  sell  to  Isaac." 

"Yes,  I  do  want  her,"  replied  Charlie.  "If  I 
want  to  go  anywhere,  I  must  go  by  boat;  for  we 
are  on  an  island,  six  miles  from  the  main,  and  if  I 
sell  this  boat,  I  must  go  in  a  canoe.  I  don't  like  to 
pull  a  canoe  any  better  than  you  do." 

"But  it's  different  with  you.  You  can  go  to  the 
main  on  pleasant  days,  and,  if  you  are  obliged 
to  go  in  rough  weather,  you  can  take  the  Perse 
verance  ;  while  I  go  out  fishing  in  the  morning, 
when  perhaps  it  is  as  pleasant  as  can  be;  before 
night  it  comes  on  to  blow,  and  I've  got  to  pull  in, 
or  go  to  sea.  You  know  old  Uncle  Jackson  was 
blown  off,  last  winter,  and  never  heard  from; 
whereas,  in  that  boat,  with  reefed  sails,  I  could 
beat  in  any  time.  It  might  be  a  matter  of  life  and 
death  with  me.  Come,  Charlie,  let  me  have  her  — 


204    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

that's    a   good    fellow !     You   can   build    another. 
I'll  give  you  a  dollar  a  foot  for  her." 

That  was  a  tremendous  price  in  those  days,  when 
corn  was  four  shillings  a  bushel,  pork  six  cents  a 
pound  in  the  round  hog;  when  the  -best  of  men,  in 
haying-time,  got  only  a  dollar  a  day,  and  at  other 
times  could  be  hired  for  fifty  or  seventy-five  cents. 
Besides,  it  must  be  remembered  that  Charlie  had 
built  this  boat  on  rainy  days,  and  at  hours  outside 
the  regular  day's  work. 

"  I'll  give  you  a  dollar  a  foot,"  continued  Henry, 
"just  for  the  boat.  You  may  take  everything  out 
of  her — sails,  spars,  anchor,  and  cable.  The  sails 
are  larger  than  I  want,  for  I  don't  want  to  be 
bothered  with  reefing  in  cold  weather.  I  can  get 
Joe  to  cut  and  make  sails  for  me.  He's  a  capital 
hand,  I  can  tell  you." 

"The  truth  is,  Henry,  I've  built  this  boat  by 
hard  knocks.  I've  got  up  as  soon  as  I  could  see  to 
work  on  her,  and  have  worked  after  I  had  done  a 
hard  day's  work,  and  was  tired.  I  have  puzzled 
over  her  till  my  brains  fairly  ached,  and  on  that 
account  think  more  of  her.  To-day  is  the  first 
time  I've  ever  been  out  of  the  harbor  in  her,  and  I 
don't  feel  as  if  I  could  part  with  her." 

"I'll  give  you  nine  shillings  a  foot  for  her." 


VICTORY    AT    LAST.  205 

"  Sell  her,  Charlie,"  said  Ben.  "  Let  him  have 
her." 

"  I  would,  Charlie,"  said  Sally.  "  He  needs  her, 
and  you  can  build  another,  as  he  says.  He  has 
offered  you  such  a  great  price,  too  !  " 

But  Charlie  remained  firm.  Henry  was  about 
to  give  up  the  matter,  when  he  said,  "  Henry,  I 
don't  want  you  to  think  I  am  holding  off  to  make 
you  bid  up.  You  offered  me  all  the  boat  was 
worth  when  you  offered  a  dollar  a  foot.  I'll  do 
this  with  you  :  I'll  sell  her  to  you,  the  bare  hull,  to 
deliver  the  first  clay  of  October,  at  a  dollar  a  foot. 
I  shan't  take  any  more,  and  I  won't  part  with  her 
till  then." 

"I'll  do  it,  Charlie;  and  when  Joe  comes  in,  I'll 
go  another  trip  with  him." 

"  I  don't  see,"  said  Ben,  after  the  boys  had  gone 
to  bed,  "  what  makes  Charlie  so  loath  to  sell  that 
boat.  I  should  think  he  would  be  proud  to  have 
an  offer  for  her  so  quick.  He  likes  Henry,  too, 
and  I  have  always  thought  he  was  rather  too  will 
ing  to  put  himself  out  for  other  folks.  Besides,  he 
has  spent  some  money  for  tools  and  paint,  and  that 
would  make  him  all  whole  again." 

"I'm  sure  I  don't  think  it  at  all  strange  he  is 
loath  to  sell  her.  Any  one  thinks  a  great  deal  of 


206    THE    TOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP   ELM   ISLAND. 

the  first  things  they  make.  I've  got  a  pair  of 
clouded  stockings  in  the  chest  of  drawers.  I  spun 
the  yarn  and  knit  them  when  I  was  eight  and  a 
half  years  old,  and  had  to  stand  on  a  plank  to 
reach  the  wheel,  and  I  don't  think  Henry  Griffin  or 
anybody  else  could  buy  them." 

"  I  don't  believe  but  there's  some  other  reason." 

"Perhaps  so."   . 

"  It  may  be  that  he  wants  to  go  off,  and  have  a 
sail  and  a  grand  time  with  Fred  somewhere,  as 
they  did  before." 

"  I  shouldn't  wonder." 

"Perhaps  he's  got  some  word  from  John,  by  Joe 
Griffin,  that  he's  coming  home,  and  he's  keeping 
her  for  that." 

"If  he'd  heard  anything  of  that  kind,  he 
would  have  told  us  the  first  thing." 

"Well,  whatever  the  reason  is,  he'll  tell  you 
when  he  gets  ready." 

But  he  didn't  tell  Sally,  nor  did  he  tell  the  boys 
after  they  had  gone  to  bed  that  night,  but  chose  a 
very  different  confidant. 


THE    SURPRISER    SURPRISED.  207 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE    STJRPRISER    SURPRISED. 

THE  next  morning,  as  they  were  chatting  after 
breakfast,  the  door  opened,  and  in  walked  Captain 
Rhines. 

"  Why,  father,"  cried  Ben,  overjoyed,  "you  took 
an  early  start." 

"  I  had  pressing  business." 

"  It  is  an  age  since  you  have  been  here.  I'm 
real  glad  to  see  you,"  said  Sally;  "I  thought  you 
had  forgotten  us.  I'll  have  some  breakfast  on  the 
table  in  a  few  moments." 

"  Charlie,  I  want  to  buy  that' boat.  I  hailed  you 
after  you  pulled  away  yesterday  ;  but  you  didn't 
hear  me.  We  had  a  hard  pull  yesterday,  against 
the  wind  and  tide  ;  I  told  Isaac  and  Sam,  we  had 
pulled  canoes  about  long  enough,  and  it  was  time 
we  had  some  easier  way  of  getting  back  and 
forth." 

"  You're  too  late,  Captain  Rhines,"  said  Henry. 
"I've  bought  her." 


208    THE    TOITXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"  You  have  ?  Then,  Charlie,  you  must  build  an 
other  for  me,  right  off,  just  like  her." 

"  I  will  do  that,  sir,  for  I  have  got  stuff  enough 
to  make  the  keel,  stern,  and  transom,  all  sawed  out, 
and  crooks  for  timbers.  I'll  begin  to-morrow;  that 
is,  if  father  can  spare  me." 

"I'll  paint  her,  and  make  the  spars  and  sails. 
Uncle  Isaac  wants  you  to  build  him  one:  he  would 
build  one  himself*  but  he  can't  get  the  time.  He 
expects  to  go  over  to  Wiscasset,  to  work  on  spars, 
and  is  driving  on  to  get  his  work  at  home  done." 

"  Does  he  want  her  the  same  dimensions  as  this 
one  ?" 

"  Yes ;  but  he  is  in  no  hurry  for  her ;  you'll  have 
boats  enough  to  build,  Charlie ;  so  you  had  better 
lay  out  for  it." 

"I  shouldn't  dare  to  build  a  boat  for  Uncle 
Isaac." 

"Why  not?" 

"  Because,  he's  such  a  neat  workman  himself,  I'm 
afraid  I  shouldn't  suit  him." 

"  I'll  risk  you ;  you'll  suit  him  to  a  hair,  and 
'twill  be  a  feather  in  your  cap  to  work  for  him." 

Such  a  thing  as  a  wood-shed  did  not  exist  at 
Elm  Island ;  indeed,  there  was  not  the  necessity 
then  for  many  things  that  are  now  really  neces- 


THE    SURPBISER    SURPRISED.  209 

sary.  There  were  always  plenty  of  dry  limbs  and 
trunks  of  trees  in  the  woods  to  start  the  fire  with, 
and  the  tremendous  heat  generated  in  one  of  those 
old  fireplaces  (with  a  log  four  feet  long  and  three 
feet  thick,  a  back-stick  on  that  half  the  size,  and  a 
fore-stick  eight  feet  long),  would  burn  green  red 
oak,  and  even  black  ash,  when  once  fairly  under 
way.  When  dry  wood  was  wanted,  Ben  or  Charlie 
would  go  into  the  woods  and  soon  find  a  tall  pine 
which  had  been  dead  for  years,  the  bark  all  fallen 
off,  and  nearly  all  the  limbs,  and  streaked  with 
pitch,  which  had  exuded  and  hardened  in  the  sun 
on  the  outside.  Laid  low  by  the  axe,  the  top 
would  be  broken  into  many  pieces,  thus  rendering 
the  cutting  up  3,  light  labor.  To  be  sure,  when 
hauled  to  the  door,  it  lay  in  summer  exposed  to  all 
the  rains,  and  in  winter  half  buried  in  snow.  But 
what  did  that  matter.  When  night  came,  Charlie 
filled  the  great  oven  —  which,  being  in  the  back,  was 
always  nearly  hot  enough  to  bake  —  with  this  pine, 
and  great  clefts  of  green  beech,  which  in  the  course 
of  the  night  would  get  warm,  and  a  little  dry  on 
the  outside.  In  the  •  morning  there  would  be  a 
bushel  of  live  coals  on  the  hearth,  the  remains  of 
the  old  log.  Raking  them  forward,  on  go  the 
green  log  and  back-stick,  the  green  fore-stick,  dry 
14 


210    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

pine,  half  pitch,  on  top  of  the  glowing  coals,  top  of 
that  the  clefts  of  beech,  and  perhaps  a  dry  bush, 
crowns  the  summit. 

A  few  waves  of  a  hemlock  broom  —  whew !  up 
goes  a  column  of  spiral  flame  roaring  up  the 
chimney. 

Away  goes  Charlie  to  feed  the  cattle.  Thus  you 
see  a  wood-shed  was  very  far  from  being  felt  a 
necessity  on  Elm  Island,  where  many  other  things, 
more  needed,  had  hitherto  been  lacking.  But  now, 
among  other  added  comforts,  Ben  thought  it  would 
be  well  tohaveone:"it  would  save  digging  the  wood 

oo      o 

out  of  the  snow,  and  thus  bringing  water  and  snow 
into  the  house,  and  also  be  convenient  for  many 
purposes.  Another  consideration  was,  they  would 
soon  need  a  workshop,  as  the  space  in  the  barn 
now  devoted  to  that  purpose  would  be  needed  for 
hay ;  neither  did  he  like  to  have  shavings  around 
the  barn,  and  there  was  leisure  before  tho  fall 
harvest  to  build  it.  He  did  not  wish  to  interfere 
with  Charlie's  boat-building,  as  he  saw  he  was  very 
much  pleased  with  the  idea  of  building  a  boat  for 
Captain  Rhines.  It  was  an  excellent  opportunity 
for  this  good  boy,  who  was  always  ready  to  assist 
everybody  else,  to  do  something  for  himself. 

Charlie,  as  our  readers  well  know,  was  never 


THE    STJRPRISER    SURPRISED.  211 

better  pleased  than  when  he  could  plan  some 
pleasant  surprise  for  his  adopted  parents.  Ben, 
therefore,  determined  to  surprise  Charlie;  he  re 
solved  to  build  the  shed  a  story  and  a  half  in 
height,  to  admit  of  having  a  corn-house  in  a  por 
tion  of  the  tipper  story.  Corn-houses  were  set  up 
on  logs,  or  stone  posts,  three  feet  from  the  ground, 
and  detached  from  all  other  buildings,  on  account 
of  rats;  but  there  was  no  objection  to  making  it  in 
the  shed,  there,  as  neither  rats  nor  mice  had  found 
their  way  to  Elm  Island. 

While  Charlie  was  busily  at  work  in  the  day 
time  upon  his  boat,  and  in  evenings  studying  sur 
veying,  Ben  had  got  his  timber  from  the  woods  for 
the  frame,  and  hauled  it  to  the  door.  lie  then 
hired  a  man  by  the  name  of  Danforth  Eaton,  who 
was  a  shingle  weaver,  and  a  good  broadaxe  rnan, 
to  help  him. 

Together  they  sawed  up  the  shingle  bolts,  and 
then  Ben  set  Eaton  at  work  shaving  shingles, 
while  he  hewed  the  timber.  To  Ben,  who,  since 
he  had  lived  on  the  island,  had  become  an  ex 
cellent  axe  man,  it  was  mere  sport  to  hew  pine 
timber :  with  his  heavy  axe  and  enormous  strength, 
striking  right  down  through,  every  clip  he  sliced 
off  the  chips  almost  as  fast  as  he  could  walk,  and 
soon  began  to  frame  it. 


212    THE   YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

It  was  pretty  lively  times  on  Elm  Island  now  : 
in  the  barn  Charlie  was  building  a  boat ;  under  a 
rude  shelter,  made  by  setting  four  poles  in  the 
ground,  and  placing  some  boards  on  them,  Eaton, 
who  was  a  splendid  shingle  weaver,  was  shaving 
shingles  ;  —  I  can't  tell  you  why  shingle  makers  are 
called  weavers,  unless  it  is  on  account  of  the  mo 
tion  of  their  bodies  back  and  forth  when  shav 
ing  ;  —  and  Ben  mortising  and  boring  the  timber. 

Charlie's  boat  grew  with  great  rapidity ;  for 
besides  knowing  just  how  to  go  to  work,  he  had 
the  command  of  his  whole  time,  and  moreover,  the 
boat  being  just  like  the  other,  had  all  his  moulds 
ready.  On  rainy  days,  Ben  and  Eaton  sawed  out 
his  planks,  helped  him  get  out  his  timbers,  and  put 
on  his  plank. 

Charlie  had  been  so  completely  absorbed  in  his 
boat,  that  he  paid  but  very  little  attention  to  what 
his  father  and  Danforth  were  doing :  to  be  sure  he 
glanced  at  their  work  as  he  passed  back  and  forth 
from  the  barn  to  the  house  ;  noticed  that  Danforth 
had  done  making  shingles,  and  was  making  clap 
boards,  and  that  the  timber  was  of  great  length ; 
but  supposed  his  father  had  hewn  his  sticks  of 
double  length,  intending  to  cut  them  up.  But  a 
few  days  after,  looking  at  a  sill  that  was  finished,  he 


THE    SURPRISER    SURPRISED.  213 

perceived  by  the  mortises  that  it  was  intended  to 
be  used  the  whole  length :  he  put  on  his  rule  and 
found  it  was  fifty  feet,  and  the  cross-sill  was 
twenty-five. 

"  Why,  father,  are  you  going  to  have  a  shed  as 
big  as  all  this  ?  You  won't  need  a  quarter  part  of 
this  space." 

"  You  know  I'm  a  big  fellow :  I  want  consider 
able  room  to  turn  round  in  ;  almost  as  much  as  a 
ship  wants  to  go  about." 

"  But  you'll  not  want  half  of  this." 

"  You  know  I  want  a  corn-house  overhead,  and 
if  we  finish  the  rooms  in  the  chamber  of  the  house, 
your  mother  would  like  to  have  some  rough  place 
lor  her  spinning  and  weaving  in  the  summer,  and 
to  keep  her  flax  and  wool  in  ;  and  then  what  a 
handy  place  it  would  be  to  keep  ploughs  and 
harrows,  the  Twilight,  my  canoe,  and  their  sails, 
when  we  want  to  haul  them  up  in  the  fall!  O, 
there's  always  enough  to  put  in  such  a  place  j 
besides,  you  know  I  shall  want  a  cider-house." 

Charlie  burst  into  a  roar  of  laughter. 

"  A  cider-house  !  and  the  orchard  ain't  planted 

yet." 

"  Well,  the  ground  is  cleared  for  it,  and  the 
chamber  will  be  a  nice  place  for  Sally  to  dry 
apples." 


214    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

"Yes,  when  we  get  them." 
"  We  shall  get  them ;  I  like  to  look  ahead." 
The  frame   was   raised  and   covered,  and   Ben 
parted  off  twenty-five  feet  from  the  end  farthest 

* 

from  the  house,  and  laid  a  plank  floor  in  it ;  the 
other  half  had  no  floor.  After  laying  the  floor 
overhead,  in  that  part  next  to  the  house,  he  parted 
off  the  space  for  the  corn-chamber,  and  made  stairs 
to  go  up  to  it. 

The  Perseverance  had  come  in,  and  was  landing 
fish  at  Isaac's  wharf.  Ben  told  Charlie  he  was 
going  to  Wiscasset  in  her,  to  get  some  nails  to  put 
on  the  clapboards  and  shingles ;  but  when  he 
came  back,  he  not  only  brought  nails,  but  bricks, 
lime,  glass,  putty,  and  Uncle  Sam  El  well,  whom 
he  set  to  building  a  chimney  and  fireplace  in  the 
farther  end  of  the  shed,  where  he  had  laid  a  plank 
floor. 

Charlie  was  now  thoroughly  mystified,  and  his 
curiosity  greatly  excited.  When  Uncle  Sam  had 
laid  the  foundation,  he  proceeded  to  make  a  fire 
place,  and  by  the  side  of  it  built  an  arch,  and  set  in 
it  a  kettle,  which  Ben  had  brought  with  him. 

"  Father,"  asked  Charlie,  "  what  is  the  fireplace 
and  the  kettle  for?" 

"  Well,  it  is  very  handy  to  have  a  fire ;  you  often 
want  to  use  such  a  place  late  in  the  fall." 


THE    SURPRISER    SURPRISED.  215 

"I  should  have  thought  you  would  have  made 
the  wood-shed  at  this  end,  and  put  this  place 
nearer  the  house ;  it  would  have  been  handier  for 
mother." 

"Your  mother  will  want  to  go  into  the  wood 
shed  ten  times  where  she  will  want  to  come  in 
here  once." 

"But  what  is  the  kettle  for?" 

"  I'm  sure  I  shouldn't  think  you  would  ask  such 
a  question  as  that:  wouldn't  it  be  very  handy  in 
the  spring,  when  the  sap  was  running  very  fast 
and  driving  us,  to  have  a  place  where  Sally  could 
boil  some  on  a  pinch ;  and  wouldn't  it  be  nice  for 
heating  water  to  scald  a  hog  ?  " 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  it  would." 

But  Charlie  was  fir  from  satisfied ;  he  noticed 
that  his  father  didn't  say  directly  that  the  room 
was  for  such  and  such  purposes,  only  asked  if  it 
wouldn't  be  suitable  and  convenient :  he  was  more 
puzzled  than  ever. 

"Mother,  what  is  father  laying  a  floor,  building 
a  fireplace,  and  setting  a  kettle  in  the  wood-shed 
for?  and  he's  going  to  put  in  glass  windows,  for 
he's  got  glass  and  putty." 

"I'm  sure  I  don't  know  any  more  than  you  do; 
he  don't  tell  me." 


216    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"  I  expect  he's  fixing  it  for  Sally  and  Joe  to  go 
to  housekeeping  in." 

"  I'm  sure  he  ain't,"  replied  Sally.  "  I  don't  ex 
pect  to  have  half  so  good  a  place  as  that.  I  expect 
to  go  into  a  log  house  or  a  brush  camp." 

Sally  and  Joe  had  been  engaged  a  long  time. 
Joe  had  been  saving  up  money,  and  so  had  Sally. 
He  had  bought  a  piece  of4wild  land,  and  they  were 
expecting  to  begin  as  Ben  and  his  wife  had.  Sally 
was  not  hired.  She  was  a  cousin  to  Ben  on  his 
mother's  side,  and  was  making  it  her  home  there, 
while  getting  ready  to  be  married.  A  right  smart 
Yankee  girl  was  Sally  Merrithew.  She  could  wash, 
iron,  bake,  brew,  card,  spin,  and  weave.  A  noble 
helpmeet  for  a  young  man  who  had  to  make  his 
way  in  the  world. 

Sally  Merrithew  had  six  sheep,  which  her  father 
had  given  her  in  the  spring.  Ben  put  them  on 
Griffin's  Island  to  pasture,  and  when  he  sheared  his 
sheep,  sheared  them  for  her.  She  had  spun  and 
was  weaving  the  wool  into  blankets.  She  had  also 

O 

bought  linen  yarn,  which  she  was  scouring,  and 
meant  to  make  sheets  of.  She  calculated  to  help 
Mrs.  Rhines  enough  to  pay  her  board,  and  was  not 
very  particular  whether  she  did  more  or  not. 
They  bleached  linen,  washed,  and  sang  together, 


THE    SUKPKISEB    SURPRISED.  217 

with  the  bobolinks  and  robins  at  the  brook,  and 
had  the  best  times  imaginable. 

Aunt  Molly  Bradish  thought  she  was  running  a 
dreadful  risk  to  marry  such  a  "harum-scarum  cre- 
tur  "  as  Joe  Griffin  ;  but  Aunt  Molly  Avas  mistaken 
there.  Sally  knew  Joe  a  great  deal  better  than 
she  did,  and  knew  that  he  was  a  smart,  prudent, 
kind-hearted  fellow  as  ever  lived,  without  a  single 
bad  habit,  except  that  of  playing  rough  jokes.  She 
was  to  the  full  as  fond  of  fun  as  he,  but  did  not  ap 
prove  of  manifesting  it  in  that  way,  and  exerted  a 
constantly  restraining  influence  upon  him,  probably 
a  great  deal  more  than  one  would,  who,  of  a  less 
sanguine  temperament,  was  incapable  of  appreciat 
ing  a  joke,  and  had  no  temptations  of  their  own  to 
struggle  against. 

oo  o 

There  are  people  in  this  world  who  assume  great 
merit  for  resisting  temptations  they  never  experi 
enced.  Sally  manifested  that  common  sense  that 
is  generally  the  accompaniment  of  true  wit,  when 
she  replied  to.  Aunt  Molly  by  saying,  that  if  Joe 
was  to  undergo  all  the  hardships  of  clearing  a  farm 
in  the  wilderness,  and  experience  the  trials  and 
disappointments  that  were  the  lot  of  most  people, 
he  would  need  all  the  spirits  he  possessed  to  keep 
him  up. 


THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

When  Joe  Griffin  came  over  for  the  schooner, 
Fred  came  with  him ;  he  said,  "  to  see  Charlie's 
boat."  Perhaps  he  did;  but  it  was  very  evident 
that  was  not  all,  nor  the  principal  reason,  since  he 
had  somewhat  to  say  to  Charlie  of  so  private  a 
nature,  that  neither  the  barn  nor  Charlie's  bedroom 
were  retired  enough  for  the  purpose,  but  they  must 
needs  resort  to  the  old  maple,  and  climb  to  the 
platform  in  the  top  of  it,  and  it  was  sufficiently 
interesting  to  keep  them  there  till  dinner-time,  — 
although  Charlie  had  left  a  hot  plank  in  the  steam 
box,  —  after  which  Fred  returned  in  the  schooner. 

Charlie  sent  word  to  Captain  Rhines  by  Fred 
that  his  boat  would  be  done  in  three  days,  for  he 
was  putting  on  the  last  plank,  and  the  thwarts  and 
gunwale  were  in  and  kneed  off. 

Captain  Rhines  came  on  at  the  time  specified, 
and  brought  his  paint,  oars,  and  sails  with  him. 
Charlie  assisted  him  in  painting  her,  and  when  she 
was  dry,  went  home  in  her,  taking  Uncle  Sam 
and  Eaton  with  him,  who  had  completed  their 
work. 

"Now,  Charlie,"  said  Ben,  when  they  had  all 
gone,  "  that  end  of  the  shed  is  yours  for  a  work 
shop,  chimney,  fireplace,  and  boiler.  You  can 
finish  it,  make  the  doors,  windows,  and  sashes,  and 


THE    SURPRISER    SURPRISED.  219 

arrange  it  to  suit  you  own  notions  and  convenience. 
A  boy  that  will  do  what  you  have  done  is  worthy 
of  a  good  place  to  work  in." 

"O,  lather,  I  thank  you  a  thousand  times! 
There's  nothing  in  this  world  you  could  have 
done  that  would  have  made  me  so  happy.  A  fire 
place  —  only  think  !  I  can  be  so  happy  working 
here  in  the  winter,  and  you  can  be  here  with  me, 
and  mother  can  come  and  see  us,  and  Ben,  and  the 
baby,  when  it's  a  little  bigger." 

"Yes,  and  you  can  set  up  a  boat  here,  twenty- 
four  feet  long,  and  that  is  as  long  as  ever  you  will 
want  to  build." 

"  I  can  have  a  bench  all  around,  it  is  so  wide, 
and  set  up  two  boats  at  once,  if  I  like." 

"Yes,  Charlie,  and  room  enough  to  split  up 
boards  with  the  splitting-saw,  and  to  have  a  key- 
block,  and  hew  anything,  and  such  a  nice  steam 
kettle ! " 

"O,  that's  the  greatest," 

"  Look  overhead,  Charlie.  See,  I've  laid  the 
floor  only  about  two  thirds  the  way  over." 

"Yes,  father  — what  is  that  for?" 

"We  can  put  any  log  up  there  that  is  not  very 
large,  —  cedar,  for  instance,  —  and  one  of  us  up 
there,  and  the  other  down  here,  split  it  with  the 
Whip-saw." ' 


220    TUB    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"Then,  on  the  other  side,  that's  floored,  we  can 
pile  up  the  boards  and  plank,  and  keep  them  dry." 

"  Just  so ;  and  at  the  end  I  have  left  space  for  a 
door  to  run  stuff  in  at." 

"  I  can  keep  all  my  moulds,  knees,  and  every 
thing  I  need  up  there  and  below.  Father,  don't 
you  think  I  shall  take  a  sight  of  comfort  making 
the  benches,  and  putting  up  shelves,  racks  for  my 
tools,  my  steam  box,  making  the  window-sashes 
and  doors,  and  building  Uncle  Isaac's  boat  in 
here?" 

"  I  think  you  will,  Charlie." 

"  I'll  tell  you  what  I  mean  to  do." 

"What?" 

"  Cut  a  lot  of  cedar  for  planks,  oak  and  maple 
for  keels  and  transoms,  raft  it  over  to  the  mill  and 
get  it  sawed,  dig  a  lot  of  knees,  and  fill  this 
chamber  full  of  stuff  before  winter.  But,"  he  said, 
pausing,  "  perhaps  I  shan't  have  any  more  boats  to 
build  after  I  finish  Uncle  Isaac's." 

"  No  fear  of  that,  Charlie.  It  will  be  but  a  very 
little  while,  after  father  and  Henry  go  down  fish 
ing  among  the  canoes,  before  you  will  have  a  call 
to  build  boats.  I  know  our  people  around  here 
well  enough  to  know  that  they  won't  stand  it  a 
great  while  to  see  others  sailing  by  them,  while 
they  are  tugging  at  their  oars." 


THE  sunrniSER  SURPRISED.  221 

"Father,  Undo  Isaac  is  at  home  now.  Next 
trip  he  is  going  with  Joe.  lie  has  often  asked  me 
to  come  and  see  him.  If  you  are  willing,  I'll  go 
before  I  begin  on  the  shop." 

"  Go,  Charlie,  and  make  him  a  good  visit." 


222    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

WHY    CHARLIE    DIDN'T    WANT    TO    SELL   THE    WINGS 
OP    THE    MORNING. 

THE  next  morning,  Charlie,  arrayed  in  his  best, 
went  over  to  see  Uncle  Isaac,  landing  first  at  the 
wharf,  and  having  a  little  conference  with  Fred, 
looking  over  his  fish  flakes,  into  the  fish-house  and 
store,  after  which  he  made  sail,  and  soon  ran  over 
to  Uncle  Isaac's  Point.  He  found  his  canoe  at  the 
fhore,  aground  forward,  but  her  stern  afloat.  He 
did  not  want  to  let  his  boat  ground,  and  had  just 
put  his  hand  on  the  canoe  to  shove  her  into  the 
water,  that  he  might  put  his  boat  off  at  anchor, 
when  he  espied  the  birch,  bottom  up,  under  a  tree, 
and  carefully  covered  with  spruce  boughs  to  protect 
her  from  the  sun.  An  irresistible  desire  instantly 
seized  upon  him  to  get  into  the  birch.  Indeed, 
he  wanted,  and  had  determined  to,  the  first  time 
he  ever  saw  her,  which  was  when  Uncle  Isaac  came 
on  to  Elm  Island  to  announce  the  arrival  of  the 
A.rk  in  Havana,  but  the  good  news  had  driven  it 
all  out  of  his  head  till  too  late. 


CHARLIE'S  UNWILLINGNESS  TO  SELL.      223 

This  was  an  opportunity  too  good  to  lose.  He 
drew  her  carefully  into  the  water,  and  fastening 

4,  '  O 

her  to  his  boat,  rowed  both  ofF,  till  a.  sufficient  dis 
tance  from  the  shore,  when,  after  anchoring  the 
boat  and  furling  the  sails,  he  prepared  to  get  into 
the  birch.  He  had  heard  that  it  was  a.  very  diffi 
cult  matter  to  go  in  one ;  but  he  was  exceedingly 
lithe  of  limb,  a  proficient  in  wrestling,  accustomed 
to  put  himself  in  all  manner  of  shapes,  and  used  to 
going  in  ticklish  gunning  floats,  and  considered  the 
notion  that  he  couldn't  manage  a  birch  as  simply 
ridiculous. 

Tie  got  in,  and  disdaining  the  dictates  of  pru 
dence,  which  prompted  to  a  sitting  posture,  began 
to  paddle  towards  the  shore.  ITe  was  more  than 
three  times  the  length  of  the  canoe  from  the  boat, 
when,  he  knew  not  how  or  wherefore,  the  birch  in 
a  moment  slid  from  under  him,  and  instantly 
righting,  went  gayly  off  before  the  wind  towards 
Elm  Island. 

With  a  wild,  astonished  look,  he  swam  to  the 
boat,  and,  pulling  up  the  anchor,  caught  the  canoe, 
expecting  to  find  her  half  full  of  water;  but  there 
was  not  a  drop  in  her.  "  That  is  curious  enough,' 
said  Charlie.  lie  was  now  in  a  line  plight  to  go 
visiting!  His  new  beaver  (three-cornered),  his 


224    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

rufflecl-bosomed  shirt  (the  first  he  had  ever  owned), 
and  his  new  waistcoat  and  breeches,  and  steel  shoe- 
buckles  —  for  with  some  of  his  venture-money  he 
had  treated  himself  to  a  go-to-meeting  suit  — 
were  all  soaked  in  salt  water. 

He  debated  the  matter  some  time  in  his  mind, 
whether  he  should  go  home  or  go  on,  but  at  length 
concluded%to  go  on. 

"  I  can't  be  any  worse  off,"  said  he.  "  I'll  master 
that  birch." 

He  stripped,  and  got  into  her,  but  sat  down, 
when  he  found  he  could  keep  her  on  her  bottom. 
After  paddling  a  while  in  this  way,  he  got  upon  his 
knees,  and  could  paddle  much  better.  He  then 
stood  up  once  more,  and  went  on  very  well  for  a 
while.  At  length  she  began  to  wiggle,  at  first 
slowly,  then  faster  and  faster,  till  out  she  went  from 
under  him,  as  though  she  had  been  made  of  quick 
silver!  Charlie  swam  up  to  her,  and  pushed  her 
before  him  to  the  shore,  got  in,  and  went  out  again, 
till  he  finally  succeeded, 

Resuming  his  wet  clothes,  he  set  out  for  Uncle 
Isaac's,  and  found  him  at  work  in  his  shop. 

"You  are  all  wet,  Charlie!"  said  he,  after  the 
first  greetings  had  passed.  "  Where  have  you 
been  ?  " 


CHARLIE'S   UXWILLIXGXESS  TO  SELL.       225 

"Overboard;"  and  lie  told  him  the  story.  "Are 
you  busy,  Uncle  Isaac?" 

"  Busy  ?  No  ;  you  kno\v  I  can't  keep  still.  I  hap 
pened  to  have  some  walnut,  and  was  turning  out 
some  ox-bows,  just  to  keep  myself  from  idleness." 

"  I  have  finished  Captain  Khines's  boat,  and  came 
over  to  see  if  you  wouldn't  like  to  take  a  sail  with 
me  in  my  boat." 

''Shouldn't  like  anything  better.  But  come,  go 
into  the  house.  It's  past  the  middle  of  the  fore 
noon.  We'll  have  an  early  dinner,  rig  you  out 
with  some  dry  clothes,  and  start  right  off.  We 
can  take  a  bite  with  us,  and  come  back  when  we 
like.  There's  no  moon,  but  it  will  be  bright  star 
light." 

Charlie  was  a  great  favorite  with  Hannah  March. 
No  sooner  was  she  made  aware  of  his  misfortune 
than  she  exerted  herself  to  put  matters  to  lights. 

There  happened  to  be  in  the  house  r*  shirt  and 

waistcoat  that  his  nephew,  Isaac  Murch,  had  left 

there.      She    cut    off    a,    part    of    Uncle     Isaac's 

breeches,  and  hunted  up  n  fisherman's  knit  frock. 

"It's  no  matter  how  you  look,"  said  she;  "there's 

nobody  to  look  at   you   in  the  woods  and  on   the 

water.     Salt  water  won't  hurt  your  hat  or  clothes 

one  mite.     I'll  press  them  with  a  hot  iron   while 

15 


226    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

they  are  damp,  and  iron  the  hat.  That  ain't  wet 
inside,  and  there's  no  nap  on  it.  I'll  oil  the  shoes 
before  they  are  quite  dry,  and  rub  the  buckles  with 
vinegar  and  ashes,  wash  your  shirt,  and  do  up  the 
bosom,  and  nobody  will  know  that  anything  has 
happened." 

"  I  make  you  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  Mrs. 
Murch." 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it ! "  I  love  boys,  and  often  wish  I 
had  one  to  make  me  trouble.  I've  brought  up  a 
whole  family  of  them,  but  they  are  all  gone  to  shift 
for  themselves,  and  sometimes  Isaac *and  I  are  real 
lonesome." 

They  took  Uncle  Isaac's  stuffed  seal  with  them, 
and  their  guns,  and  set  out. 

"I'll  haul  up  the  anchor  and  make  sail,  Uncle 
Isc,ac.  You  take  the  tiller.  I  want  you  to  see 
how  well  she  steers." 

*  She  works  like  a  pilot-boat ! "  said  he,  after  he 
had  put  her  about;  "and  carries  a  little  weather 
helm,  which  she  ought  to.  A  boat  with  a  lee 
helm  isn't  safe.  She  won't  luff  quick  enough  to 
phake  out  a  flaw.  You  have  to  let  the  sheet  fly, 
and  then  she  ain't  safe,  because  she  loses  her  head 
way." 

They  shot  some  birds,  as  the  people  there  called 


CHARLIE'S  UNWILLINGNESS  TO  SELL.       227 

sea-fowl,  and,  as  the  young  flood  began  to  make, 
towards  night  went  on  to  a  ledge  Charlie  had. 
never*seen  before.  There  was  a  part  of  this  ledge 
that  was  never  covered  with  water.  On  it  was  a 
great  quantity  of  dry  eel-grass  and  logs,  that  had 
come  out  of  the  river,  and  been  flung  up  by  high 
'tides. 

They  hauled  the  boat  out,  took  down  her  masts, 
and  covered  her  up  in  eel-grass.  Uncle  Isaac  then 
wet  the  seal,  so  that  it  would  present  that  shiny 
appearance  seals  have  when  they  come  out  of  the 
water.  Then  they  piled  eel-grass  on  slabs  laid 
over  a  log,  crawled  under  it,  and  ate  their  supper. 
Towards  sxmset,  Uncle  Isaac  began  to  make  a, 
noise  like  a  seal,  and  Charlie  was.  astonished  at  the 
accuracy  of  the  imitation,  and  actually  shrank,  as 
though  a  real  animal  was  beside  him.  lie  would 
cry  first  like  an  old  seal,  then  like  a  young  one. 
By  and  by  one  seal  after  another  showed  their 
heads  above  water,  and  some  of  them  replied. 
After  a  while,  they  swam  up  to  the  rock,  and  be 
gan  to  crawl  towards  the  decoy ;  but  before  they 
reached  it,  Uncle  Isaac  gave  the  signal  to  fire,  and 
three  of  them  lay  dead  on  the  rock. 

"  They  will  come  here  no  more  to-night,  nor  for 
many  a  month,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  rising  up,  and 


228    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

flinging  off  the  sea-weed.     "  It  was  a  long  shot,  but 
we've  done  well." 

Charlie  had  been  all  day  on  the  eve  of  making  a 
communication  to  Uncle  Isaac,  but  somehow  or 
other  could  not  muster  courage.  He  thought  he 
should  do  it  while  they  were  coming  along,  but 
didn't.  Then  he  was  quite  sure  he  should  while 
they  were  under  the  eel-grass;  but  that  excellent 
opportunity  passed  away  unimproved.  It  was  now 
or  never.  Charlie  was  glad  there  was  no  moon. 
He  almost  wished  there  were  no  stars.  He  man 
aged  to  get  Uncle  Isaac  to  steer,  while  he  sat  on 
the  after  thwart,  back  towards  him. 

"  Uncle  Isaac  —  "     A  long  pause. 

"  Well,  what  is  it,  Charlie  ?" 

"  Have  you  seen  Fred  lately  ?  " 

«  Yes." 

"Did  he  ask  you  anything?" 

"Yes,  he  asked  me  if  I  had  any  corn  to  spare, 
and  I  told  him  I  would  let  him  have  five  bushels." 

"Was  that  all?" 

"Yes;  I  was  in  a  hurry;  went  down  to  get 
some  tobacco;  didn't  get  off  the  horse;  he  brought 
it  out."  A  longer  pause. 

"Fred  was  over  to  the  island.  He  wanted  me 
to  ask  you  something." 


CHARLIE'S  UNWILLINGNESS  TO  SELL.       229 

"Did  he?     What  was  it?" 

"Whether—  lie  wanted  me  to  ask  if  you 
thought  Captain  Rhines  and  his  wife  would  let  the 
girls  go  to  sail  in  this  boat  with  him  —  Henry 
Griffin  and  Fred's  sister." 

"But  ain't  you  going?" 

"Yes,  sir;  they  wanted  me  to  go  with  them." 

Charlie's  face,  as  he  got  off  all  this,  was  much 
the  hue  of  a  blood  beet;  but  Uncle  Isaac  didn't 
notice  it,  as  there  was  no  moon,  and  Charlie  sitting 
back  towards  him. 

"You  know,"  continued  he,  gathering  courage 
now  the  ice  was  broken,  "that  Captain  Rhines's 
folks  have  been  very  kind  to  me.  John  and  I  are 
just  like  brothers.  "When  we  made  the  garden, 
she  gave  me  some  beautiful  flower  roots  and 
bushes,  and  I  want  to  let  them  know  that  I'm 
sensible  of  it.  Fred  feels  just  so.  lie  says  that 
when  he  was  bitten  so  terribly,  and  almost  at 
death's  door,  Elizabeth  and  her  mother  took  care 
of  him  in  the  daytime,  and  John  nights ;  that 
Elizabeth  kept  the  flies  from  him,  bathed  his  head, 
gave  him  drink,  and  fanned  him,  for  it  was  right  in 
the  heat  of  summer." 

"To  be  sure  they'll  let  them  go.  Why  shouldn't 
they?" 


230    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEES    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"  We  didn't  know." 

"  But  I  know." 

"  How  shall  we  ask  them  ?  " 

"  Go  right  to  the  house,  and  ask  them." 

"Fred  says  he  don't  like  to,  because,  though 
Captain  Rhines  has  been  real  kind  to  him,  yet  he 
was  such  a  bad  boy,  and  went  there  in  such  shape 
after  the  dog  bit  him;  and  you  know  I  came  here 
in  bad  company,  and,  though  they  may  like  us  and 
wish  us  well,  perhaps  they  might  not  like  for  us  to 
go  with  the  girls  in  that  way." 

"Benjamin  Rhines  was  a  poor  boy,  as  myself,  and 
we  have  got  what  we  have  by  hard  knocks.  He  is 
the  last  person,  or  his  wife,  either,  to  pay  the  least 
regard  to  all  these  things  that  you  and  Fred  have 
conjured  up.  I'll  fix  it  for  you." 

"  O,  if  you  would !  That  was  what  I  wanted  to 
ask  you  all  the  time,  but  didn't  know  how  to." 

"  There's  nothing  Captain  Rhines  likes  so  well  as 
a  coot  stew.  It's  their  turn  to  come  to  our  house, 
for  we  were  there  last.  Sam  Hadlock  is  coming 
here  to-morrow  morning,  little  after  sunrise,  to  get 
Fred's  corn.  I'll  send  over  by  him,  and  invite  all 
Captain  Rhines's  folks,  and  tell  them  to  be  sure  and 
come,  Tige  and  all.  The  captain  and  his  wife  will 
come  on  the  horse,  and  the  girls  will  walk.  I'll  tell 


CHARLIE'S  UNWILLINGNESS  TO  SELL.       231 

Sam  to  invite  Fred.  You  can  all  go  out  berrying 
in  our  pasture,  and  then  ask  them.  They  will  ask 
their  mother.  You  can  go  homo  with  them  in  the 
evening,  and  make  all  your  plans." 

"But  do  you  think  Mrs,  Rhines  will  say  yes?" 

"I  know  she  will." 

"  Where  is  a  good  place  to  get  berries,  when  we 
go  to  sail  ?" 

"Smutty  Nose —  that's  burnt  ground.  There's 
lots  of  them  there." 

"Where's  a  good  place  to  get  some  fish  for  41 
chowder?  You  know  we  don't  want  to  go  out 
side,  because  'twould  take  too  much  time  out  of 
the  day." 

"And  you  had  rather  be  ashore  picking  berries, 
and  sitting  under  the  trees  talking?" 

«  That's  it." 

"I'll  tell  you:  a  haddock  is  a  good  fish  for  a 
chowder.  l)o  you  know  where  Pettigrew's  house 
is  ?  " 

"Yes,  sir" 

"Do  you  know  where  Ransom's  Ledge  is?" 

"Yes,  sir.  That  great  dry  ledge,  with  a  big, 
round  rock  right  on  the  highest  part  of  it." 

O  O  1 

"  Run  off  south  from  Smutty  Nose  till  you 
bring  Pettigrew's  chinibly  to  bear  over  that  rock. 


232    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM    ISLAND. 

Now  for  an  up-and-down  mark.  Did  you  ever 
notice  a  very  high  bluff,  two  mile  or  more  up  the 
bay,  bare  of  trees,  all  the  clear  spot  for  miles 
around,  with  a  house  right  in  the  middle  of  it?" 

"O,  yes,  sir!  That's  one  of  the  marks  for 
Atherton's  Shoal." 

"Right!  Bring  that  house  right  over  the  lone 
spruce  on  Kidder's  P'int.  You'll  drop  your  anchor 
in  about  twenty  fathoms  of  water,  and  find  plenty 
of  haddock,  and  once  in  a  while  pick  up  a  small 
cod.  If  you  catch  a  cusk,  tell  Fred  to  corn  him 
for  me ;  and  shoot  me  a  coon  on  Smutty  Nose,  if 
you  can." 

"We  will,  Uncle  Isaac,  if  there's  any  on  the 
island." 

"  Let  me  tell  you  where  to  look :  round  the  banks 
of  Horse  Shoe  Cove,  where  the  great  basswood 
trees  are." 

"I  know,  Uncle  Isaac.  They  have  holes  under 
their  roots." 

Under  the  direction  of  Uncle  Isaac  and  Hannah 
JMurch  everything  went  on  like  clock-work.  Cap 
tain  Rhines  and  his  wife  came  early  in  the  after 
noon,  as  was  the  custom  of  that  day,  both  on  one 
horse ;  the  girls  an  hour  and  a  half  later,  protected 
by  Tige,  and  accompanied  by  Fred,  who,  by  pure 


CHARLIE'S  UNWILLINGNESS  TO  SELL.       233 

accident,  taking  a  short  cut  through  the  woods,  had 
overtaken  them.  After  supper  they  went  blue- 
berrying. 

"  Why,  girls,"  said  Mrs.  Rhinos,  "  the  blueberries 
are  not  very  thick." 

"  Yes,  they  are,"  said  Hannah  Murch  ;  "  the 
ground  is  blue  with  them." 

"Then  I  guess  they  didn't  find  the  right  place, 
for  they  have  hardly  covered  the  bottoms  of  their 
pails." 

Mrs.  Rhines  made  not  the  least  objection  to  the 
girls  going,  provided  the  boys  would  promise  to 
carry  but  one  sail. 

"  \Ve  shan't  want  to  carry  the  mainsail,  Mrs. 
Rhines,"  said  Charlie;  "for  the  boom  will  be  right 
in  the  way,  and  she  works  well  under  a  foresail." 

They  had  a  splendid  time,  a  pleasant  day;  found 
the  iishing  ground  by  the  marks,  and  girls  and 
boys  caught  haddock  and  cod,  but  no  cusk ;  found 
plenty  of  berries;  and  while  the  girls  were  making 
the  chowder,  the  boys  got  a  coun  for  Uncle  Isaac, 
and  shot  some  coots;  they  didn't  have  to  row  home. 
Tige  contributed  his  full  share  to  the  interest  of 
the  occasion,  for  he  dug  out  and  killed  the  coon, 
brought  ashore  the  birds  that  were  shot,  appeared 
exceedingly  happy,  and  moreover  could  tell  no 
tales  out  of  school. 


234   THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

"  Have  you  had  a  good  time,  Charlie  ?  "  asked 
his  mother,  at  his  return. 

"  A  glorious  time,  mother ;  never  had  such  a 
good  time  in  my  life." 

"  Is  Uncle  Isaac  well  ?  " 

"  Yes,  mother ;  they  are  all  first  rate." 

"  How  did  the  girls  eujoy  their  sail  ?  " 

"Eujoy  their  sail!" 

"  Yes,  their  sail ;  and  Fred,  and  Henry,  and 
Nancy  Williams;  you  didn't  know  we  had  a  spy 
glass  on  Elm  Island.  I  have  found  out  what  I 
never  knew  before." 

"What  is  that,  mother?" 

"  That  you  can  be  as  sly  as  other  folks.  I  sup 
pose  you  are  all  right  now,  and  can  finish  the  shop, 
and  Uncle  Isaac's  boat." 

"  Yes,  mother,  all  right  now  ;  some  time  I'll  tell 
you  all  about  it." 

"No  matter;  I  know  why  you  wouldn't  sell  the 
boat." 

Charlie  now  went  to  work  with  his  father  clear 
ing  more  land,  and  working  upon  the  shop  in  the 
intervals  of  other  work,  and  on  rainy  days.  They 
also  rafted  boat  timber  to  the  mill,  and  had  it 
sawed  to  proper  dimensions ;  dug  out  roots,  pro 
cured  crooked  timber,  and  stuck  up  the  boards  in 


CHARLIE  S    UNWILLINGNESS    TO    SELL.  230 

the  shop  chamber  to  season.  Charlie  also  set  up 
Uncle  Isaac's  boat,  in  order  that  he  might  work  on 
it  in  moments  of  broken  time. 

Boat-building  was  fast  becoming  something  more 
than  an  amusement  for  Charlie :  he  had  already 
received  thirty-six  dollars,  and  was  disposed  to 
devote  to  the  business  all  the  time  he  could  spare 
from  necessary  farm  work. 


236    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST. 

CHARLIE  rose  early  one  morning,  intending,  as 
Ben  had  gone  away  and  given  him  the  day,  to 
work  on  his  boat ;  but  the  beauty  of  the  morning 
was  such,  the  wind  and  tide  just  right  for  a  sail 
both  ways  along  shore,  that  he  felt  a  strong  desire 
to  go  and  enjoy  the  day  on  the  water. 

"  Go,  Charlie,"  said  his  mother ;  "  you  work  hard 
enough ;  you'll  get  the  boat  done  long  enough 
before  Uncle  Isaac  wants  her." 

He  took  his  gun  and  luncheon,  and  started  :  he 
kept  flint,  steel,  matches,  and  a  horn  of  tinder  in 
the  locker  of  the  boat,  that  he  might  kindle  a  fire 
whenever  he  wished. 

Hauling  his  sheets  aft,  he  determined  to  run  up 
the  bay,  in  the  middle,  and  then  follow  the  shore 
along  on  his  return,  look  into  the  coves  and  nooks, 
and  when  he  saw  a  place  that  pleased  him,  land,  as 
he  had  a  very  limited  knowledge  of  the  coast. 

"I  won't  fish  any,"  said  he;  "for  if  I  try  to  do 


CHARLIE    EXPLORIXG    THE    COAST.  237 

everything  in  one  day  I  shan't  do  anything.  I'll 
have  a  look  round,  and  if  anything  comes  in  my 
way,  I'll  shoot  it." 

The  wind  was  so  that  he  could  fetch  both  ways : 
he  was  closer  hauled  going  than  returning ;  but  to 

O  O  O    i 

offset  this,  it  was  now  dead  low  water,  and  he 
would  have  the  whole  strength  of  the  flood  tide. 
The  sky  was  clear,  and  there  was  jus>t  breeze 
enough  to  carry  three  sails  without  cramping  the 
boat  or  throwing  any  spray. 

Charlie  stretched  himself  on  his  back,  and  taking 
the  tiller  over  his  shoulder,  lazily  watched  the 
sails,  occasionally  casting  a  glance  over  the  bow  to 
direct  his  course,  till,  as  the  bay  grew  narrower, 
bringing  the  shores  together,  the  beauty  of  the 
jutting  points  and  coves,  with  their  overhanging 
forests,  —  for  as  yet  the  axe  had  made  but  partial 
inroads  upon  the  wilderness,  —  induced  him  to  sit 
upright,  and  contemplate  them. 

He  was  now  many  miles  from  Elm  Island,  in  a 
part  of  the  country  entirely  unknown,  and  with 
land  on  both  sides. 

"How  like  a  witch  she  sails!"  said  he;  "what  a 
wa.ys  I  have  come !  and  I  know  by  the  tide  I've  not 
been  long." 

He  now  observed,  on  the  port  side,  a  wide  reach 


238    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

making  into  the  land,  at  the  mouth  of  which  were 
two  little  islands  —  a  wild,  picturesque  spot. 

"  That's  a  handsome  place.  I  don't  believe  but 
what  a  fresh-water  river  comes  in  there.  I  mean 
to  see." 

.  Hauling  his  sheets  as  flat  as  he  could  get  them, 
he  shot  in  between  the  little  islands ;  they  were 
covered  with  a  thick  growth  of  spruce,  that  inter 
cepted  every  breath  of  wind ;  but  the  flood  tide 
was  running  like  a  mill-race,  and  bore  him  along 
between- perpendicular  precipices  on  each  side,  that 
looked  as  though  they  had  been  one,  but  sundered 
by  some  convulsion  of  nature,  and  fringed  to  the 
very  edge  with  forest;  the  spruce,  tenacious  of  life, 
clung  to  the  fissures  in  the  faces  of  the  cliffs,  not 
more  than  two  hundred  yards  asunder. 

"  What  a  beautiful  place !  I  mean  to  come  here 
some  time  with  John  and  Fred." 

Gracefully  the  boat  glided  through  the  glassy 
water,  till  at  length  the  reach  terminated,  not  in. 
a  river,  as  he  had  imagined,  but  in  a  marsh,  through 
which  ran  a  creek,  into  which  poured  a  large 
brook. 

The  shores  were  most  beautiful,  now  that  the 
tide  was  nearly  up,  concealing  the  unsightly  marsh, 
being  undulating  with  many  little  points  and  coves 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  239 

thickly  timbered  with  oak,  birch,  and  basswood  ; 
the  long  branches  of  the  oaks,  with  their  broad 
green  leaves,  stretching  far  over  the  water. 

Though  boys  are  not  much  given  to  sentiment, 
Charlie  acknowledged  a  transient  impression  of 
the  beauty  of  the  scene,  by  silently  gazing  upon 
every  object  within  the  range  of  vision.  Impres 
sions  thus  made  are  permanent,  and  years  after 
wards  are  recalled,  and  become  the  warp  and 
woof  of  thought. 

Rousing  himself  from  his  momentary  reverie,  he 
put  his  hand  into  the  water  :  it  was  as  warm  as 
milk  ;  slowly  flowing  in  a  thin  wave  over  the  large 
extent  of  marsh  heated  by  the  sun,  it  had  become 
thus  warm. 

"  How  different  the  water  is  here  from  wlnt  it 
is  at  the  island,  where  it  comes  right  in  from  sea, 
cold  enough  to  make  your  teeth  chatter  to  go  into  it. 
It's  too  good  a  chance  to  lose." 

Over  went  the  anchor,  and  off  went  Charlie's 
clothes.  After  swimming  till  he  was  tired,  he  re 
luctantly  turned  the  bow  of  his  boat  homeward  : 
the  wind  might  die  ;  and  he  was  afraid  to  lose  the 
aid  of  the  tide. 

lie  was  so  embayed  with  lands  and  forests,  that 
his  progress  was  at  first  slow,  the  ebb  tide  not 


240    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

having  begun  to  run  ;  but  as  the  bay  widened,  the 
tide  strengthened,  the  wind  increased,  and  was,  with 
al,  more  favorable  than  in  running  up ;  the  Wings 
of  the  Morning  began  to  justify  her  high-sounding 
appellation,  and  with  a  wake  scarce  larger  than 
the  mackerel,  after  which  she  was  modelled,  left 
point  after  point  rapidly  astern. 

"  What  a  racer  you  are,  old  boat ! "  said  Charlie, 
slapping  his  hand  affectionately  on  the  gunwale. 

The  misery  and  hardships  of  Charlie's  early  life 
had  produced  a  precocity  beyond  his  years:  con 
stantly  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  a  boy  in 
age,  he  was  yet  a  man  in  thought  and  action.  As 
his  eye  wandered  over  the  vast  area  of  dense 
forest,  broken  only  here  and  there  by  a  clearing, 
where  there  were  so  few  occupants  for  so  much 
land,  he  contrasted  it  with  the  crowded  acres  of  his 
native  country. 

"  What  a  country  this  is!"  said  he;  "land  and 
work  for  all.  I'll  have  my  little  spot,  and  perhaps 
some  one  to  make  it  a  home  for  me." 

Charlie  had  now  arrived  at  a  point  where,  if  he 
sought  the  most  direct  route  for  home,  he  must 
keep  "  away "  and  stretch  off  seaward  ;  he  was 
some  three  miles  above  Uncle  Isaac's  point. 

Clearings  now  became   more  frequent ;   framed 


CHAIILIK    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  241 

and  log  houses  alternated  with  each  other,  as  the 
means  of  the  settlers  were  more  or  less  limited. 
The  shore  line,  however,  was  far  less  picturesque 
and  wild  :  it  was  regular  and  flat,  with  few  inden 
tations,  except  some  little  nooks  where  those  set 
tlers  whose  clearings  abutted  on  the  shore  hauled 
up  their  log  canoes.  He  debated  with  himself 
whether  he  should  keep  "  away,"  and  run  for  home, 
or  run  the  shore  down  till  he  came  to  where  he 
was  acquainted. 

He  did  not  like  to  leave  this  large  portion  of  the 
shore  unexplored.  He  hove  the  boat  to,  and  stand 
ing  on  the  head-board,  looked  around :  he  per 
ceived  that  the  formation  of  the  land  changed  very 
much,  —  farther  alone  being  broken  into  hills  and 

'  O  O 

valleys,  —  and  that  the  shore  was  rugged  and  bold. 
The  vision  here  was  limited  by  a  long,  heavily- 
wooded  point,  of  singular  shape;  and  no  farther 
view  of  the  coast  could  be  obtained  without  run 
ning  off,  so  as  to  look  by  it. 

"  There's  a  shore  worth  looking  at.  I'll  know 
what  is  beyond  that  point,  if  I  don't  get  home  to 
night.  I'll  sleep  in  the  woo'ls :  it's  a  long  time 
since  I  have  done  so.  I  wish  I  had  brought  more 
luncheon." 

The  growth  of  hemlock,  spruce,  and  fir  was  now 
10 


242    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OP    ELM    ISLAND. 

succeeded  by  white  oak,  nock  maple,  and  beech : 
as  he  neared  the  point,  he  perceived  that  it  was 
very  long,  with  rocky  shores  of  a  moderate  height; 
but  instead  of  terminating  in  a  sharp  angle,  or  in 
many  little  jagged  portions,  it  bent  around  some 
what  in  the  form  of  a  sickle,  though  more  curved 
at  the  end.  At  the  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
was  an  island  of  six  acres,  very  long  in  proportion 
to  its  width  ;  level,  and  covered  with  a  growth  con 
sisting  almost  entirely  of  canoe  birch,  many  of 
them  three  feet  in  diameter,  and  sixty  or  seventy 
feet  in  height. 

"  There  must  be  a  cove  round  this  point,"  said 
he.  He  picked  the  flint  of  his  gun,  and  freshened 
the  priming.  As  he  rounded  the  hook,  some  coots, 
that  were  feeding  under  the  lee  of  it,  took  wing. 
Though  taken  by  surprise,  he  fired  and  brought 
down  one :  he  now  sailed  into  a  spacious  cove 
formed  by  the  long  point  on  one  side,  and  a  shorter 
one  on  the  other,  facing  south-west ;  by  its  posi 
tion,  the  sweep  of  the  northern  part  of  the  point 
and  an  outlying  island  completely  protected  from 
all  winds. 

The  long  point,  which  was  more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  in  breadth,  with  the  adjacent  land,  sloped 
from  a  high  ridge  gradually  to  the  south-west, 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  243 

terminating  in  a  spacious  intervale  of  deep,  moist 
soil,  extending  to  the  south-west  point,  which  rose 
abruptly  from  the  beach,  —  a  high,  rocky  bluff,  cov 
ered  with  spruce  and  white  oak,  —  while  at  the  very 
extremity  a  leaning  pine,  clinging  by  its  massive 
roots  to  the  edge  of  the  cliif,  supported  the  nest  of 
a  fish-hawk.  Although  the  growth  was  very 
heavy,  few  evergreens  were  to  be  seen. 

From  the  south-western  edge  of  this  sunny  and 
sheltered  valley  the  ground  rose  abruptly  into 
rounded  hills,  with  valleys  intervening,  the  high 
ground  covered  with  a  noble  growth  of  white  oak. 

Exclaiming,  "  I'll  not  go  from  here  this  blessed 
night  till  I  have  seen  all  there  is  to  be  seen," 
after  taking  a  hearty  luncheon,  he  began  to  ex 
plore.  The  level,  at  the  water's  edge,  was  timbered 
with  a  mixed  growth  of  canoe  and  yellow  birqjies, 
shooting  up  to  a  great  height,  many  of  the  trunks 
of  the  yellow  birches  having  a  flattened  shape, 
which  appeared  very  singular  to  Charlie :  along 
with  these  were  ash,  and  occasionally  an  enormous 
hemlock ;  there  were  a  few  round  stones  scattered 
over  the  surface,  covered  with  moss  of  various 
colors,  and  clasped  by  the  tree  roots. 

"What  a  splendid  field  this  would  make! 
Wouldn't  grass  grow  here,  I  tell  you!"  •- kicking 


244   THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM.  ISLAND. 

up  the  black,  rich  soil  with  his  foot.  "What  a 
nice  place  to  set  a  vessel!  what  splendid  timber 
to  build  her  of!  and  it  would  come  right  down  hill. 
What  a  place  for  a  saw-pit,  under  the  side  of  that 
steep  ledge  !  Anybody  could  build  a  stage  there, 
and  roll  the  timber  right  on  to  it.  What  a  place  for 
a  garden  !  —  falls  right  off  to  the  sun.  O  !  O  !  " 

As  he  ascended  the  slope,  great  long  beeches, 
and  once  in  a  while  a  Norway  pine,  shot  up  sky 
ward,  with  scarcely  a  limb  except  at  the  top,  whero 
every  fork  boasted  the  nest  of  a  great  blue  heron. 

"  How  are  you,  old  acquaintance  ?  "  said  Charlie, 
as  they  flew  over  his  head  ;  "  reckon  we've  met 
before,  or  some  of  your  relations." 

He  now  came  to  a  place  where  the  ledge  oc 
casionally  cropped  out,  and  the  beech  and  pine 
gave  place  to  a  growth  of  sugar  maple. 

"What  a  chance  to  make  sugar!  —  build  the  camp 
at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  and  haul  the  sap  down. 
Wouldn't  apple  trees  grow  here !  you  better 
believe  it!" 

His  attention  was  now  arrested  by  the  sound  of 
running  water.  Turning  around,  he  came  upon  a 
broad,  deep  brook,  with  water  of  a  reddish  tinge, 
running  very  swiftly,  leaping  over  logs  half 
imbedded  in  the  soil,  till,  with  a  broad  mouth, 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  245 

bordered  by  enormous  basswood  trees,  composed, 
as  is  often  the  habit  of  that  tree,  of  many  trunks 
springing  from  a  common  root,  it  met  the  sea  at 
the  base  of  the  cliffs  of  the  south-western  point. 

"  How  handsome  these  trees  must  look  in  bios- 
som!  and  the  water  is  deep  enough  at  high  tidu 
to  sail  right  into  the  mouth  of  this  brook,  and 
under  the  trees  :  won't  I  do  it  some  time  ?  " 

He  now  perceived,  at  a  distance,  something 
glancing  white  through  the  mass  of  foliage. 

"  I'll  see  what  that  is  when  I  come  back.  I  want 
to  see  what  is  on  the  height  of  land." 

Proceeding  up  the  ascent,  he  beheld  a  level  stu1- 
face  of  apparently  a  light  loam. 

"  Here,"  said  he,  "is  some  black  wood,  at  least." 
There  were  clumps  of  large  white  pines  and  spruce, 
with  red  oak,  but  no  continuous  growth  of  pine, 
as  on  Elm  Island.  "  Here  is  corn,  grain,  and 
potato  land.  What  a  splendid  farm  this  would 
make !  so  many  kinds  of  land,  and  no  waste  land." 

Going  farther,  he  again  came  upon  the  brook. 

"I  shall  get  lost.  I'll  follow  the  brook,  and  see 
what  that  white  thing  was." 

Looking  through  the  trees  into  a  broad  opening, 
he  saw  a  bear  with  two  cubs,  picking  blueberries. 

"I've   nothing    but   small    shot   in    my  gun:    if 


246    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

you'll  let  me  alone,  I'll  let  you  alone;"  and  he 
passed  on. 

The  brook  led  him  to  a  rocky  ridge,  through  a 
chasm,  in  which  the  brook  flung  itself  over  bowlders 
large  and  small,  old  logs,  and  over  and  under  great 
tree  roots,  that  ran  and  twisted  in  among  them 
from  bank  to  bank. 

It  was  the  white  foam  of  this  waterfall  Charlie 
had  caught  glimpses  of  through  the  foliage. 

"  There's  a  brook  for  you,"  said  he  ;  "  it's  another 
kind  from  our  brook :  that's  a  quiet,  cosy  little 
brook ;  but  this  is  a  tearing  fellow.  What  a  chance 
for  a  dam  in  that  gap !  'twould  cost  next  to  noth 
ing  to  build  it,  and  there's  water  enough  to  carry 
a  saw  mill,  spring  and  fall." 

Following  the  course  of  the  brook,  which  from 
the  point  of  the  fall  to  the  mouth  was  very  devi 
ous,  he  at  length  came  to  a  place  where  it  almost 
returned  upon  itself,  forming  a  little  tongue,  with 
a  beautifully  rounded  extremity,  entirely  bare 
of  underbrush,  and  covered  with  a  thick  mat  of 
grass.  Near  the  end  stood  a  magnificent  elm,  the 
only  one  Charlie  had  as  yet  noticed.  Its  trunk 
was  begirt  with  that  network  of  foliage  formed  by 
the  interlacing  of  many  small  twigs  and  green 
leaves,  which  often,  in  its  natural  state,  impart  such 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  247 

singular  beauty  to  that  noble  tree.  Among  these 
meshes  the  wild  ivy  crept  and  twined,  half  im 
bedded  in  the  cork-like  bark.  Far  above  the  roots, 
two  enormous  branches  diverged  from  the  trunk, 
and  nearly  at  right  angles  with  it ;  after  running 
some  distance  in  that  direction,  curved  upward, 
separating  at  a  great  height,  the  one  into  three,  the 
other  into  five  branches,  and  there  again  sub 
dividing,  together  with  those  of  the  main  trunk 
and  others  springing  from  the  surface  of  the  side 
branches,  terminated  in  a  vast  tracery  of  pendent 
foliage,  covering  the  whole  of  the  little  promontory 
with  their  shadow,  and  almost  touching  the  brook 
that  wrashed  its  shores.  As  Charlie  burst  from  the 
gloom  of  the  thick  forest  upon  this  sweet  spot  and 
this  lordly  tree,  among  whose  broad  masses  of 
foliage  the  rays  of  the  declining  sun  seemed  to  love 
to  linger,  he  paused  in  mute  admiration.  At  length 
he  approached  the  great  tree,  and  standing  on  tip 
toe,  managed  to  barely  reach  the  extremity  of  a 
twig,  and  drew  down  the  limb  :  he  then  stepped 
back  and  looked  upon  the  tree,  and  noted  every 
feature  of  the  landscape. 

"Was  there  ever  so  beautiful  a  spot  as  this  !"  he 
said  at  length.  "  I  must  have  a  piece  of  this  land. 
f  never  can  like  any  other  place,  except  Elm 


248    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Island,  after  this.  I  wonder  who  it  belongs  to. 
Here's  everything  —  timber,  water,  good  land,  I 
know  by  the  growth,  and  O,  how  beautiful !  Fish 
in  the  brook  too  :  there's  no  fish  in  our  brook,  only 
the  smelts  and  frost-fish  that  come  from  the  salt 
water." 

Heated  and  weary,  he  sat  down  between  the 
spur  roots  of  the  great  tree,  and  looked  up  between 
the  boughs,  watching  the  play  of  the  sunlight 
quivering  among  the  leaves,  and  espied  two  hang- 
birds'  (orioles)  nests  pendent  from  the  branches. 

"You've  been  stealing  the  tow  from  my  grafts, 
I  guess,  you  rogues,"  noticing  the  material  of  which 
the  nests  were  made. 

Returning  to  the  shore,  he  found  the  tide  was 
out,  and  had  left  a  considerable  extent  of  smooth, 
gravelly  beach.  He  walked  down  to  the  water's 
edge ;  the  clams  were  spouting  all  around  him. 

"A  bold  shore  and  plenty  of  clams  :  it's  a  great 
thing  to  have  clams;  we've  often  found  it  so  on  the 
island.  If  I  had  an  axe  to  cut  logs  and  build  a  big 
fire,  I'd  sleep  here  to-night ;  but  I  haven't,  and  that 
she  bear,  or  some  wolf,  might  pay  his  respects  to 
me  in  the  night.  I'll  tell  Uncle  Isaac  about  that 
bear,  and  we'll  have  her,  cubs  and  all." 

He  now  picked  up  some  dead  wood,  and  making 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  249 

a  fire,  cooked  his  coot,  took  a  drink  of  water  from 
the  brook,  anchored  the  boat  in  the  middle  of  the 
cove,  and  wrapping  himself  in  the  sails,  was  soon 
fast  asleep. 

With  the  break  of  day  he  weighed  anchor,  and 
made  sail  for  Uncle  Isaac's.  He  arrived  there  just 
as  they  were  eating  breakfast. 

"  You've  come  in  a  good  time,  Charlie ;  sit  down 
with  us." 

No  sooner  was  appetite  appeased  than  he  de 
scribed  the  place  he  had  been  so  much  delighted 
with,  to  Uncle  Isaac,  and  told  him  all  about  it,  and 
also  about  the  island  ;  what  large  birches  there 
were  on  it ;  that  he  saw  a  cove  in  one  end  of  it,  as 
he  passed,  that  wound  around  as  it  went  in. 

"  That  cove,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  "  is  the  safest 
little  harbor  that  can  be :  no  sea  can  get  in  there, 
the  mouth  is  so  narrow,  and  it  is  so  crooked.  The 
bark  on  my  birch  came  from  that  island,  and  bet 
ter  land  never  lay  out  doors." 

"Who  owns  it?" 

"  Nobody." 

"Nobody?" 

"  No.  I  suppose  it  belongs  to  the  state ;  but  it 
don't  belong  to  any  individual.  We  don't  think 
anything  here  of  a  little  thing  like  that." 


250    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"Could  I  buy  it?" 

"Yes,  you  could  buy  it  of  the  state,  and  then 
you  would  get  a  deed  of  it ;  but  if  you  should  go 
on  there,  clear  a  spot,  plant  it,  and  keep  hold  of  it, 
nobody  would  ever  consarn  with  you,  and  after  a 
while  you  would  hold  it  by  possession." 

"  Is  there  any  name  to  it  ?  " 

"  Not  as  ever  I  knew." 

"How  do  you  distinguish  it?" 

"  Some  call  it  Birch  Island,  and  some  Indian 
Island,  because  the  Indians  used  to  make  canoes 
there." 

Charlie  told  him  about  the  bear. 

"  Shall  I  get  Fred,  and  you  go  with  us,  and  kill 
her?" 

"  No,  Charlie ;  she's  nursing  her  cubs,  and  is  poor 
now ;  let  her  alone  till  my  corn  is  in  the  milk ;  she'll 
be  getting  into  that ;  be  fat  then,  and  the  cubs 
worth  something,  and  we  will  get  the  whole  of 
them.  I'll  keep  track  of  her.  How  do  your  par 
tridges  come  on  ?  " 

"  First  rate  ;  before  they  hatched  I  cut  away  the 
bushes,  and  built  a  tight  fence  around  the  hen,  and 
when  I  go  there,  they  run  right  under  her." 

"You  may  keep  them  this  summer,  and  next 
winter ;  but  you'll  lose  them  in  the  spring,  unless 
you  put  them  in  a  cage." 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  251 

"  How  can  that  be  ?  I  let  them  out  the  other 
day,  and  they  followed  the  lien,  and  acted  just  like 
any  other  chickens." 

"  Because  that  wild  nature  is  born  in  'em ;  you 
may  take  an  Indian  boy  and  send  him  to  school ; 
but  when  he's  grown,  he'll  take  to  the  wigwam 
again.  I  tell  you,  when  the  partridges  begin  to 
drum  next  spring,  look  out." 

"  What  is  the  name  of  this  place  where  I  slept 
last  night?" 

"  It  has  no  name ;  it's  wild  land,  wilderness : 
didn't  you  see  a  bear  there  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir ;  and  I  heard  wolves  howl  in  the 
night;  but  is  there  not  some  name  to  tell  it  by?" 

"  There's  a  number  to  the  range,  —  I  forget  what 
it  is,  —  and  we  call  the  cove  Pleasant  Cove." 

"That's  a  first-rate  name:  what  made  them  call 
it  that?" 

"  Because  it  is  such  a  nice  harbor,  and  a  shel 
tered,  sunny  spot ;  people  in  the  winter  time, 
bitter  cold  weather,  pulling  up  the  bay  in  a  canoe, 
get  under  the  lee  of  that  long  p'int,  and  then  go 
into  the  cove,  and  are  safe." 

"  Does  anybody  own  that  ?  " 

"Yes,  there's  a  man  in  Salem  owns  twelve  hun 
dred  and  eighty  acres,  and  that  is  part  of  it." 


252    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"Would  he  sell  it?" 

"  I  suppose  so.     He  has  sold  a  good  deal." 
-  "  What  would    he    ask   an    acre  for  that   part 
of  it?" 

"  There  are  no  masts  or  spars  on  it  of  any  great 
amount.  It's  settling  land  —  hard  wood  growth. 
It  ought  not  to  bring  more  than  fifteen  cents  an 
acre ;  but  he  don't  care  whether  he  sells  or  not, 
and  might  ask  fifty." 

"Do  you  know  him  ?  " 

"Yes,  indeed;  known  him  this  twenty  years. 
He  stopped  at  my  house  when  he  bought  that 
land,  and  three  times  as  much  more.  I  carried  the 
chain  for  Squire  Eveleth  when  he  run  it  out." 

"Uncle  Isaac,  I  want  a  piece  of  land.  You 
don't  know  how  much  I've  thought  about  it ! 
None  of  my  folks  ever  owned  an  inch  of  land. 
Night  and  day  I  have  thought  and  dreamed  about 
it,  and  I  want  that,  and  no  other  in  this  world. 
The  moment  I  came  round  the  point  into  the  cove, 
and  saw  the  sun  shining  on  the  trees,  something 
said  to  me,  That's  your  home." 

"I  know  what  that  feeling  is,  and  all  about  it; 
and  if  you  feel  that  way,  you'll  never  be  worth  a 
cent,  or  be  contented  in  any  other  spot.  There's 
something  comes  out  of  the  soil  you  love  that  puts 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  253 

the  strength  into  your  arm,  and  the  courage  into 
your  heart." 

"But  how  shall  I  get  it?" 

"Buy  it.  You've  got  money  enough,  when  Fred 
pays  you,  to  buy  enough  for  a  farm,  and  more  too." 

"But  before  that,  some  one  that  has  got  money 
to  pay  down  might  see  it,  like  it  just  as  well  as  I 
have,  and  buy  it  right  off;  perhaps  it's  sold  now." 

"No,  it  ain't.  People  are  not  so  fond  of  going 
on  to  wild  land.  They  had  rather  buy  land  that 
lias  been  partly  cleared.  I'll  write  to  Mr.  Picker 
ing,  and  get  the  price,  and  the  refusal  of  it,  and  I'll 
buy  it  for  you.  When  you  get  your  money  from 
Fred,  you  can  pay  me.  You'll  have  enough  from 
your  boats,  probably,  to  buy  two  hundred  acres  ; 
and  when  we  hear  from  him,  I'll  go  over  it  with  you. 
There's  a  heavy  growth  of  pine  back  from  the 
shore:  I  should  want  tint;  and  there's  a  pond, 
that  the  brook  is  an  outlet  of:  I  should  want  com 
mand  of  that  water.  The  brook  is  a  mill  privilege. 
Boards  will  be  worth  something  by  and  by;  not  in 
my  day,  perhaps,  but  you  are  young,  and  can  afford 
to  wait." 

"Then  there's  bears  on  it,  Uncle  Isaac.  It  is 
worth  a  good  deal  more  for  that." 

"  Most  people  wouldn't  consider  that  any  privi 
lege." 


254    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

«  O,  I  should ! " 

"But  the  thing  that  toles  the  bears  there,  and 
makes  them  like  it,  is  a  privilege." 

«  What  is  that  ?  " 

"Acorns.  There's  a  master  sight  of  acorns  and 
beech-nuts  on  the  whole  of  that  range  along  the 
shore,  and  hog-brakes  in  the  swales.  Hogs  can  get 
their  living  in  the  woods,  and,  by  clamming  on  the 
beach,  all  the  summer  and  fall." 

"Won't  the  bears  kill  'em?" 

"  Once  in  a  while  one  ;  but  then  you  can  kill  the 
bear,  and  he'll  be  worth  as  much  as  the  hog.  I 
would  rather  have  ten  bears  round  than  one  wolf." 

"You  know,  Charlie,"  said  Hannah  Murch, 
"bear's  grease  is  good  to  make  boys  limber  to 
wrestle.  If  you  had  served  my  bed-clothes  as  you 
did  Sally's,  I  don't  know  what  I  should  have  done 
to  you." 

"  I  would  have  spoilt  all  the  beds  in  the  house 
for  the  sake  of  throwing  Henry  Griffin." 

"It  appears  to  me  you  are  beginning  in  good 
season  to  get  a  farm.  You  are  not  going  to  house 
keeping  ?  " 

"The  sooner  the  better,"  said  Uncle  Isaac. 
"When  a  rat  gets  a  hole,  he  carries  everything 
to  it." 


CHARLIE    EXPLORING    THE    COAST.  255 

"  Xo,  Mrs.  March,  nothing  of  that  kind  ;  but  I 
do  want  a  piece  of  the  soil  that  I  can  walk  over 
and  call  my  own,  and  have  crops  of  my  own,  that 
nobody  can  take  from  me.  I  love  to  work  with 
tools ;  but  I  love  the  earth  that  God  made,  and  the 
woods.  I  love  that  spot,  and  am  afraid  I  shall 
lose  it  if  I  don't  get  it  now.  If  I  can  only  know 
it's  mine,  that's  enough.  Mrs.  March,  I  think 
there's  something  substantial  about  the  earth." 

"  So  there  is,  Charlie  ;  and  when  you've  got  the 
land,  you've  something  under  your  feet,  and  it  can 
lay  there  till  you  want  it.  There  will  be  no  taxes 
of  any  amount  till  there's  a  road  made  through  it." 

"Hannah,"  said  Uncle  Isaac,  "the  Bounty  is 
loading  with  bark  and  wood  for  Salem,  in  "Wilson's 
Cove.  I'll  send  my  letter  by  her." 

"  And  I,"  said  Charlie,  "  must  go  home." 


256    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CHARLIE    BECOMES    A    FREEHOLDER. 

CHARLIE  was  in  high  spirits  when  he  weighed 
anchor;  but  on  the  way  "a  change  came  over  the 
spirit  of  his  dream." 

He  began  to  reproach  himself  that,  carried  away 
by  the  attractions  of  Pleasant  Cove,  and  the  im 
pulse  of  the  moment,  he  had  gone  so  far  without 
consulting  his  adopted  parents.  "  Father  will 
think  that  I  ought  to  have  asked  him.  He  would 
have  bought  the  land  for  me  if  he  had  thought 

O  <-J 

best  I  should  have  it." 

When  he  reached  the  island,  he  told  them  all 
about  it.  Ben  and  Sally  seemed  to  understand  his 
feelings  perfectly. 

"It  would  not  have  looked  well,"  said  Sally, 
"  after  Uncle  Isaac  offered  to  buy  the  land  for  you 
not  to  have  accepted  the  offer." 

"You  could  not  have  found  a  better  piece  of 
land,  or  a  more  pleasant  spot,"  said  Ben.  "That 
flat  next  to  the  beach  is  splendid  wheat  land,  and 


CHARLIE    BECOMES    A    1JREEHOLDER.  257 

there's  an  excellent  boiling  spring  on  the  eastern 
side  of  the  cove." 

"I  didn't  see  that,  hut  I  saw  the  brook." 

The  evenings  were  now  quite  long,  and  Charlie 
made  rapid  progress  in  surveying.  Uncle  Isaac's 
boat  also  grew  apace  under  the  new  impulse  he 
had  received.  Every  stroke  of  the  hammer  was  so 
much  towards  buying  land. 

Ben's  prediction  in  respect  to  increase  of  busi 
ness  was  abundantly  verified.  After  Uncle  Isaac's 
boat  was  finished  ;;nd  gone,  Charlie;  set  up  another, 
•without  any  model  or  guide  except  his  eye,  and 
the  knowledge  of  proportions  which  he  had  gained 
from  the  other  boats.  lie  endeavored  to  unite  the 
sailing  qualities  of  the  West  Wind  with  a  greater 
capacity  of  burden,  and  ability  to  carry  sail  with  a 
less  quantity  of  ballast. 

Charlie,  did  not  intend  to  sell  this  boat,  but  to 
make  her  large  and  able  for  rough  weather  and 
heavy  seas,  and  keep  her  lor  a  family  boat  to  go  to 
the  main  land  in.  He  had  of  late  been  smitten 
with  a  very  great  desire  to  <^o  to  meeting  on  the 
main  land,  and  to  dine  at  Captain  Ifhines's,  and  he 
knew  that  his  mother  would  like  to  go  with  him, 
as  she  never  was  afraid  of  anything.  But  although 
he  did  not  intend  to  sell  this  boat,  he  designed  her 
17 


258    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

for  a  permanent  model  of  others  to  be  sold.  He 
perceived  that  the  other  boats,  though  infinitely 
better  than  the  dug-outs  to  get  about  in,  were  not 
what  was  required  for  fishing ;  that,  though  great 
sailers,  they  were  not  capacious  enough  to  hold  fish 
and  ballast  both,  and  required  too  much  ballast  to 
keep  them  on  their  legs.  It  is  by  no  means  an 
easy  attainment  to  unite  in  one  boat  all  the  ele 
ments  of  a  good  fishing-boat,  that  will  sail  well, 
row  easy,  and  save  life  in  bad  weather.  A  fisher 
man  wants  a  boat  that  will  row  easy,  for  he  often 
starts  away  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  it 
is  generally  calm,  and  rows  seven  or  eight  miles, 
perhaps  more,  to  reach  his  ground.  He  cannot  go 
without  ballast,  and  he  can  get  none  after  he  is 
outside,  except  he  gets  fish,  which  is  by  no  means 
certain.  On  the  other  hand,  if  he  gets  a  large 
quantity  of  fish,  he  can  throw  some  of  his  ballast 
overboard,  and  he  doesn't  want  to  row  half  a  ton 
of  ballast  eight  or  ten  miles.  But  if  his  boat  is 
stifi^  and  will  carry  reefed  sails,  or  a  whole  foresail, 
with  a  moderate  quantity  of  ballast  that  he  can 
keep  in  all  the  time,  not  sufficient  to  overload  her 
when  fish  are  plenty,  and  yet  sufficient  to  make  her 
safe,  he  is  suited. 

It  is  not  a  great  deal,  to  be  sure,  to  row  four  or 


CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.     259 

five  hundred  weight  of  ballast  more,  for  once  or 
twice,  but  when  you  have  got  to  do  it  year  in  and 
year  out,  when  tired  and  hungry,  it  is  a  good  deal. 
A  fisherman  wants  a  boat,  toe,  that  is  smart,  stiff 
to  bear  a  hard  blow,  buoyant,  will  mind  her  helm, 
and  work  quick  to  clear  an  ugly  sea,  and  sail  well 
on  a  wind.  They  often  go  twenty  miles  from 
land,  tempted  by  weather  that  appears  "hard  and 
good,"  to  particular  shoals,  where  they  get  large 
fish,  when  the  weather  suddenly  changes,  and  in 
an  open  boat  they  must  beat  in,  and  they  do  beat 
in.  There  are  boats  now  built  at  Hampton  or  Sea- 
brook  that  would  beat  into  Boston  Bay,  with  a  man 
in  them  that  knew  how  to  handle  them  in  a  gale  of 
wind,  when  a  ship  couldn't  do  it ;  for,  when  a  big 
ship  gets  down  to  close-reefs,  she  won't  do  much 
on  a  wind.  The  people  then  knew  where  the  fish 
were  as  well  as  we  do  now ;  but  they  couldn't  go 
off'  to  those  places  except  in  pinkies,  and,  when 
they  ventured  to  the  inner  shoals,  reefs,  and  hake 
ground  in  their  canoes,  it  was  real  slavery.  They 
had  to  row  in  if  the  wind  came  ahead,  or  it  was 
calm,  and  were  liable  to  be  blown  to  sea  and  lost. 

Charlie  meant  to  build  a  boat  that  would  answer 
these  requirements  as  far  as  he  was  able.  Then  he 
meant  to  take  moulds  of  every  timber  and  every 


260    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

streak  of  plank  as  he  went  along,  so  that  he  might 
work  from  thorn,  and  build  another  of  the  same 
size,  with  one  half  the  labor. 

This  he  did,  and  built  a  boat  twenty-two  feet 
long  on  top,  sharp  under  water,  and  deeper  in  pro 
portion  to  her  length  than  the  others,  with  a  pink- 
stern  and  lap-streak.  It  was  less  work  to  put  on 
the  planks  with  a  lap  than  with  a  calking-seam ; 
there  was  less  need  of  accuracy;  for,  if  the  plank 
lapped  too  much  in.  any  place,  you  had  only  to  take 
it  off  with  a  plane  or  chisel. 

When  his  boat  was  finished,  he  painted  her  by 
the  streaks,  and  she  looked  as  neat  as  a  pin.  He 
thought  she  was  a  great  deal  handsomer  than  a 
square  stern;  so  did  everybody. 

When  anchored  beside  the  Perseverance,  she 
looked  so  much  like  her  that  he  christened  her 
Perseverance,  Jr.  As  soon  as  the  spars  and  sails 
were  made,  Charlie  and  the  whole  family,  except 
Sally  Merrithew  and  the  baby,  went  over  to  meet 
ing.  People  then  came  great  distances  to  meeting, 
taking  a  luncheon  of  "turnovers,"  or  doughnuts 
and  cheese,  and  going  out  to  walk  in  the  burying- 
ground  to  eat  it,  the  intermission  between  services 
being  short. 

The  boat  was  anchored  in  the  cove,  right  in 


CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.     261 

front  of  the  church,  and  many  were  the  curious 
eyes  that  scanned  her  proportions  during  the  inter 
mission. 

Henry  Griffin  had  enjoyed  his  boat  but  three 
weeks,  when  lie  came  on  to  the  island,  and  wanted 
to  buy  the  Perseverance,  Jr. 

"  What  do  you  want  of  two  boats?" 

"•  There's  a  man  in  Wiscasset  wants  mine  for  a 
pleasure-boat.  I  think  yours  would  be  a  great  deal 
better  boat  for  fishing  in  the  winter,  in  rough 
weather.  I  will  sell  mine,  and  buy  yours." 

"I  won't  sell  this  boat,  for  we  want  just  such  a 
boat  to  go  over  to  meeting  in.  We  can  go  in  her 
dry,  by  carrying  short  sail,  any  time,  almost ;  but 
I'll  build  you  one  just  like  her." 

«  When  ?  " 

"  I'll  begin  to-morrow." 

"Then  build  her,  and  I'll  sell  this." 

In  the  course  of  a  fortnight  he  had  three  orders 
more  ;  all  wanted  them  as  soon  as  possible,  they 
said.  The  boats  were  rather  large,  but  just  the 
thing  for  two  men. 

He  then  hired  Robert  Yelf  to  work  with  him, 
and  sent  some  moulds  over  to  Uncle  Isaac,  who 
dug  out  roots  for  him,  and  procured  crooks  for 
knees  and  breast-hooks.  When  he  had  filled  these 


2G2    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

orders,  there  was  a  lull,  and  Charlie  went  to  farm 
ing  and  making  preparations  for  boat-building  in 
future. 

Having  now  mastered  the  principles  of  survey 
ing  by  means  of  a  Gunter's  scale  and  chain,  which 
Ben  possessed,  and  a  cross  staff  which  he  had  made 
under  his  father's  directions,  he  began  to  practise 
by  measuring  the  cleared  land  on  the  island  and 
the  points,  and  making  and  platting  the  different 
pieces.  He  was  anxious  to  learn  the  use  of  the 
compass,  and  to  run  lines  by  it ;  but  he  had  no  land 
compass,  and  here,  with  most  boys,  the  matter 
would  have  rested  ;  but  unaccustomed  to  yield  to 
difficulties,  Charlie  resolved  to  make  a  boat  com 
pass  serve  his  turn  —  the  very  one  that  had  been 
the  instrument  of  saving  his  *life  in  the  snow 
squall. 

His  first  attempt  was  to  make  a  tripod.  Upon 
a  piece  of  oak  board  he  drew  a  circle  two  inches 
larger  than  the  compass,  with  projections  at  each 
side  six  inches  long,  and  sawed  it  out  by  the  marks : 
he  then  drew  another  circle,  two  inches  inside  of 
this,  and  sawed  down  to  it,  cutting  out  the  wood 
so  as  to  leave  two  projections  on  each  side,  two 
inches  wide  and  two  long :  in  each  of  these  he  cut 
n  slot  on  the  underside,  also  in  one  of  the  end  ones, 


CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.     263 

to  receive  a  tenon  cut  on  the  end  of  each  of  the 
legs.  By  heating  a  wrought  nail  he  made  rivets, 
upon  which  his  legs  traversed  easily,  and  fastened 
the  compass  to  a  wooden  peg  in  the  centre.  A 
land  compass  has  brass  perpendiculars  at  each  end 
of  the  base  upon  which  it  sits,  with  slits  in  them, 
by  which  to  sight.  In  order  to  represent  these,  he 
made  two  holes  in  the  ends  of  his  base,  in  line  with 
the  needle  of  the  compass,  and  put  in  two  knitting 
needles,  making  them  perpendicular  with  a  plumb- 
line  :  thus,  by  setting  up  a  stake,  he  had  three  objects 
in  range,  and  could  sight  accurately.  A  land  com 
pass  has  a  spirit  level  on  its  frame,  by  which  to 
level  it,  screws  to  keep  it  in  place,  and  a  ball  and 
socket  joint  upon  which  it  moves;  but  by  spread 
ing  or  contracting  the  legs  of  his  tripod,  and  by 
means  of  a  plumb-line  (the  great  resource  of  all 
mechanics  in  emergencies),  he  contrived  to  depress, 
elevate,  and  adjust  the  compass,  measure  land,  and 
run  a  line  accurately,  and  in  a  manner  which  Ben, 
after  looking  over  his  work,  pronounced  correct. 

"  Survey  the  island,  Charlie,"  said  Ben  ;  "  I 
should  like  to  know  how  much  there  is  in  it.  I 
will  carry  the  chain  for  you,  and  help  you  about 
measuring  the  points." 

"  Don't  you  know  how  much  land  you  bought?" 


264    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM   ISLAKD. 

"No ;  I  bought  it  for  so  much  ;  had  it  for  more  or 
less  —  what  Mr.  Welch's  father  had  it  for  when  he 
bought  it ;  I  expect  it  overruns." 

"  I  should  like  to  know,  too,"  said  Uncle  Isaac, 
who  had  come  to  the  island  that  morning.  "  I've 

heard   the    most  talk   back   and  forth  about  this 

» 

island :  some  say  Ben  hasn't  got  the  land  he  paid 
for,  some  say  he's  got  more.  You  need  three  to 
work  in  the  woods.  I'll  carry  the  chain." 

"  I  had  it  for  seventeen  hundred  acres,"  said  Ben. 

"Well,  there's  all  that,  if  not  more." 

They  ran  lines  north-east  and  south-west  the 
length  of  the  island,  and  parallel  to  each  other  at 
eighty  rods  apart ;  then  ran  cross  lines,  also  parallel, 
eighty  rods  apart;  blazed  a  tree  at  every  intersec 
tion,  and  numbered  the  ranges  included  in  these 
spaces,  and  put  them  down  in  a  field-book.  As 
the  shore  line  was  irregular,  they  measured  the 
shore  sections  by  offsets  from  the  range  lines. 

Charlie  then  made  a  plat  of  it.  The  island  con 
tained  nineteen  hundred  and  thirty-five  acres,  one 
rood,  twenty-seven  rods,  five  links. 

"  That's  not  much  more  than  there  ought  to  be," 
said  Uncle  Isaac;  "  you  have  measured  the  whole; 
but  they  didn't  call  these  points  anything,  and 
they  of  course  made  allowance  for  the  squawk 
swamp." 


CHARLIE    BECOMES     A     PREEIIOLDEE.  265 

They  were  live  days  in  doing  it,  and  it  afforded 
Charlie  excellent  practice.  A  short  time  after  that, 
Ecu  was  sent  for  to  run  a  large  lot  of  timber  land. 
He  hired  Squire  Eveleth's  compass,  and  took 
Charlie  with  him,  when  he  had  an  opportunity  to 
perfect  his  knowledge  of  that  instrument. 

In  due  time  Uncle  Isaac  received  a  letter  from 
Salem.  The  price  of  the  land  was  seventy-five 
cents  an  acre.  Uncle  Isaac,  Ben,  and  Charlie  went 
to  look  over  it. 

"It  is  too  much,"  said  Uncle  Isaac;  "seventy- 
five  cents  an  acre  !  farther  back,  you  can  buy  it  for 
twelve  or  fifteen  cents." 

"  What  of  that  V  "  replied  Ben :  "  no  chance  to  get 
a  thing  to  eat,  except  what  you  get  from  the  land, 
and  while  you  are  clearing,  almost  starve  to  death ; 
have  to  hunt  and  live  on  beech  leaves  and  acorns; 
while  here  are  clams  at  the  shore,  and  fish  and 
lobsters  in 'the  sea,  to  fall  back  upon;  besides  a 
brook  with  a  fine  mill  privilege." 

"  Better  than  that,  Ben  ;  there  are  plenty  of 
pickerel  in  this  pond,  and  the  alewivcs,  smelts,  and 
frost-fish  come  up  here  into  the  brook,  and  any 
amount  of  eels." 

"  There  is  still  another  great  advantage  you  have 
overlooked :  there  is  a  swale  made  by  the  flowing 


266    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

back  of  the  water,  where  the  beavers  once  had  a 
dam,  that  will  cut  six  or  seven  tons  of  hay ;  that 
would  be  everything  to  a  man  going  to  settle  on 
it.  With  the  hay  in  that  swale  for  winter,  browse 
in  this  hard  wood  growth  in  summer,  he  could  keep 
cattle  right  off." 

The  pond  contained  over  two  hundred  acres, 
and  they  found  that  in  order  to  obtain  that,  and  a 
portion  of  the  heaviest  pine  growth  back  of  it,  it 
would  be  necessary  for  Charlie  to  buy  about  four 
hundred  acres,  or  more. 

"  Buy  it,  Charlie,"  said  Ben ;  "  you  will  then  have 
the  mill  privilege  and  the  timber  both,  and  can  do 
well  with  it." 

Charlie  concluded  to  take  it ;  and  Uncle  Isaac 
wrote  to  Salem  to  close  the  bargain.  Ben  and 
Charlie  now  went  to  Boston  and  procured  their 
trees,  taking  up  a  load  offish  to  Mr.  Welch,  for  Fred. 
Mr.  Welch  gave  Charlie  a  Gunter's  scale,  a  land 
compass  and  chain,  with  all  the  appurtenances. 

They  received  a  letter  from  Isaac  Murch,  to  the 
great  delight  of  all,  especially  of  Captain  Rhines  — 
the  readers  of  the  Ark  will  remember  him.  Mr. 
Welch  told  the  captain  that  he  had  received  a 
letter  at  the  same  time  from  Captain  Radford,  in 
which  he  said  Isaac  was  now  second  mate  of  the 


CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.     267 

Congress,  an  excellent  seaman,  and  good  navigator; 
and  he  should  give  him  a  mate's  birth  at  the  first 
opportunity. 

"  He's  my  boy,"  said  the  captain,  highly  gratified ; 
"for  I  brought  him  to  life  when  he  was  good  as 
dead,  and  Flour  and  I  educated  him.  I'll  risk  him 
anywhere  ;  that  will  be  good  news  for  his  parents 
and  Uncle  Isaac/' 

Fred  had  orders  from  Mr.  Welch  for  more  fish ; 
Joe  Griffin  likewise. 

Charlie  was  now  abundantly  supplied  with 
material  for  building  boats,  and  had  more  orders. 
The  harvest  being  over,  he  was  assisted  by  his 
father.  In  a  tight  shop,  with  a  rousing  fire,  they 
had  nice  times  together. 

Xobody  would  fish  in  a  canoe  now ;  and  as 
demand  always  creates  supply,  an  ingenious  man 
at  Wiscasset  (a  ship  carpenter,  who  had  been 
injured  by  a  fall,  and  could  not  endure  the  heavy 
work  of  the  ship-yard)  saw  one  of  Charlie's  boats, 
took  the  dimensions  of  her,  and  set  up  boat-build 
ing.  Uncle  Sam  Elwell  also  built  a  boat  for  him 
self,  and  other  ingenious  people  did  the  same;  but 
Charlie's  boats  outsailed  all  the  others,  and  were 
preferred  ;  there  was  something  about  them  the 
others  could  not  imitate.  Uncle  Isaac  said  there 
was  a  soul  in  them  ;  they  were  alive. 


268    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

The  Perseverance  made  several  trips,  and  Fred 
obtained  bis  goods  in  that  way  easily,  and  at  small 
expense  for  freight,  and  paid  Charlie  his  money, 
with  a  handsome  profit,  much  more  than  the  money 
would  have  earned  at  interest. 

The  last  time  the  Perseverance  went  to  Boston, 
Sally  went  in  her,  baby  and  all.  Mr.  Welch  and 
his  wife  were  delighted  to  see  her.  Mrs.  Welch 
went  shopping  with  her,  and  she  purchased  furni 
ture  for  the  house,  and  dishes  to  take  the  place  of 
the  old  pewter,  a  large  looking-glass,  and  a  globe 
to  hang  on  the  wall  in  the  front  room,  dresses  for 
herself,  and  some  presents  for  Ben  and  Charlie. 

Mr.  Welch  declared  the  child  should  be  named 
for  him,  and  so  it  was. 

Charlie,  having  received  his  money,  was  natural 
ly  anxious  to  close  the  bargain  for  the  land,  of 
which  Uncle  Isaac  had  obtained  the  refusal. 

In  going  over  it  the  first  time,  they  had  merely 
guessed  at  the  number  of  acres  it  would  be  neces 
sary  to  buy  in  order  to  take  in  the  pond,  the  pine 
timber,  and  the  whole  of  the  brook. 

Men  like  Ben  and  Uncle  Isaac  will,  by  pacing, 
come  quite  near  to  the  contents  of  a  piece  of  land; 
but  it  was"  now  necessary  to  measure  and  describe 
it  sufficiently  to  make  a  deed. 


CHARLIE  BECOMES  A  FREEHOLDER.     269 

Charlie  wanted  the  cove,  the  long  point,  a  oTowth 
of  white  oak  which  extended  several  rods  bevond 
the  short  point,  and  the  pond  and  brook.  These 
he  meant  to  have,  even  ifhe  had  to  buy  more  land 
than  he  actually  wanted.  Mr.  Pickering  \vro1c  to 
Uncle  Isaac,  who  was  an  old  acquaintance  of  his, 
that  he  was  willing  to  take  Rh  lues's  survey,  il'  lie 
•would  go  with  them  and  carry  the  chain. 

When  they  arrived  at  the  spot  with  the  new 
instruments  Mr.  Welch  had  given  him,  Charlie 
wanted  to  begin  at  the  shore  line,  above  Long 
Point;  but  Ben  told  him  if  he  did  he  would  lose 
the  point,  as  he  could  only  hold  what  was  within 
his  lines.  They  therefore  began  on  the  shore,  be 
low  the  short  point,  ran  the  lines,  arid  made  a 
description  by  which  to  write  the  deed,  as  follows  : 
Beginning  at  a  blazed  yellow  birch  tree,  standing 
in  a  split  rock  on  the  shore,  twenty  rods  south 
west  from  Bluff  Point,  so  called  ;  thence  running 
south-east  four  hundred  and  fifty  rods  to  ft  bla/ed 
pine,  marked  C.  B.  (Charlie's  initials),  south-east 
cornei';  thence  north-east  one  hundred  and  fifty 
rods  to  a  bla/ed  pine  tree,  marked  C.  B.,  north-east 
corner;  thence  north-west  four  hundred  and  six 
rods  to  a  blazed  red  oak  tree  on  the  shore,  marked 
C.  B. ;  thence  along  the  shore  of  Pleasant  Point, 


270    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF   ELM   ISLAND. 

so  called,  at  low-water  mark,  to  the  point  of 
the  high  ledge  at  the  westerly  end  of  the  same; 
thence  west  by  south  forty  rods  to  the  south 
westerly  end  of  said  Pleasant  Point  at  low-water 
mark;  the  line  thence  to  the  point  begun  at, 
being  below  low-water  mark,  across  the  mouth 
of  Pleasant  Cove,  containing  three  hundred  and 
sixty-three  acres,  more  or  less,  thirty-seven  being 
deducted  for  the  contents  of  Pleasant  Cove. 

"I  must  go  to  the  brook  and  get  a  drink  of 
water,"  said  Charlie,  when  they  had  finished. 

"  We'll  go  to  Cross-root  Spring,"  said  Uncle 
Isaac.  "That's  something  you've  not  seen  yet, 
and  it's  one  of  the  best  pieces  of  property  you've 
got." 

Uncle  Isaac  led  the  way  along  the  shore  to  the 
head  of  the  cove.  There  the  land  rose  gradually 
into  a  very  gentle  swell.  A  few  rods  from  the 
water's  edge,  on  the  breast  of  this  slight  elevation, 
were  two'large  birches,  whose  branches  interlocked  ; 
two  of  their  main  roots,  crossing  each  other,  grew 
together,  and  between  them  quivered,  in  transient 
gleams  of  sunlight,  the  clear  waters  of  a  noble 
spring. 

Charlie  looked  down  into  it.  The  white  sand 
was  rolling  over  and  over,  as  the  bubbling  ,water 


CHxlRLIE    BECOMES    A    FREEHOLDER.  271 

flung  it  tip  from  the  bottom.  All  around  were  the 
footprints  of  sea  and  land  birds  and  animals. 
Uncle  Isaac  pointed  out  the  track  of  a  wolf,  coons, 
and  the  print  of  a  bear's  foot. 

"  There,"  said  he,  "  is  a  well  that  God  Almighty 
dug  for  the  good  of  his  creatures.  You  see  they 
know  where  it  is.  More  red  than  white  men  have 
drank  at  this  spring.  It  is  a  priceless  gift !  Let 
us  drink,  and  remember  the  Giver." 

These  details  may  not  be  very  interesting  to  us> 
but  they  were  intensely  so  to  Charlie,  who  felt  his 
hand  was  almost  upon  the  prize  he  had  so  long 
desired.  It  had  already  been  productive  of  one 
good  result.  It  had  given  him  an  excellent  practi 
cal  knowledge  of  surveying  and  mathematics,  most 
useful  in  his  mechanical  pursuits. 

When  Ben  had  written  out  the  description,  after 
returning  to  the  island,  he  gave  it  to  Charlie,  and 
said,  "  When  you  pay  your  money,  and  get  a  deed 
of  the  land  thus  described,  you've  got  all  the  land 
that  belongs  to  you,  and  as  good  a  farm  as  there  is 
in  town." 

In  due  time  Charlie  received  his  deed,  which, 
he  being  a  minor,  ran  to  Uncle  Isaac  in  trust  for 
him. 


272    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CHARLIE    IN    THE    SHIP-YARD. 

PERHAPS  the  readers  of  the  previous  volumes 
will  recollect  that  Isaac  Murch  became  so  much 
interested  in  the  account  given  him,  in  Havana,  by 
Captain  Rhines,  of  the  noble  conduct  of  Flour  in 
respect  to  his  old  master,  aiding  him  in  his  poverty, 
and  also  of  his  kindness  and  fidelity  to  himself 
when  sick,  that  he  determined  to  teach  him  to  read 
and  write,  and  he  made  some  progress  during  the 
passage  home.  When  Isaac  went  to  sea  again, 
John  Rhines  became  his  teacher,  and  when  John 
went  to  learn  a  trade,  Captain  Rhines  undertook 
the  task  himself.  It  was  quite  pleasing  to  note  the 
respect  with  which  Flour  was  treated  by  the  whole 
community  since  he  had  begun  to  respect  himself, 
had  become  a  temperate  man,  and  was  acquiring 
knowledge ;  for,  not  satisfied  with  teaching  him 
to  read,  Captain  Rhines  was  instructing  him  in 
arithmetic.  He  spent  the  rainy  days,  and  other 
leisure  moments  he  could  spare  from  his  labor,  in 


CHARLIE    IK    THE    SHIP-YARD.  273 

studying.  Nobody  now  called  him  Flour,  except 
occasionally  from  long  habit. 

It  was  now  James,  or  Peterson,  or  even  Mr. 
Peterson.  lie  was  an  excellent  calker  and  rigger. 
Captain  Rhines  introduced  him  at  Wiscasset, 
where  they  built  many  large  vessels  to  carry  ton- 
timber  and  spars,  as  a  reliable  workman,  and  he 
had  all  the  work  he  wanted.  The  captain  also 
gave  him  a  piece  of  land,  put  him  up  a  house- 
frame,  and  boarded  it.  lie  was  able  to  finish  it, 
little  by  little,  himself,  and  leave  the  money,  which 
was  in  Captain  Rhines's  hands,  on  interest.  lie 
had  a  boy,  Benjamin,  named  after  Captain  Rhines, 
nineteen  years  old,  a  stout,  smart  fellow,  with  very 
handsome  form  and  features,  all  the  boy,  now  John 
Rhines  was  gone,  that  Charlie  couldn't  throw;  but 
lie  was  so  black  he  shone. 

Before  this,  Flour  lived  near  Captain  Rhines's 
pasture,  in  a  half-faced  log  cabin,  where  he  had 
squat.  It  stood  among  a  bed  of  thistles,  with 
heaps  of  clam  shells  all  around.  Destitute  of  a 
chimney,  the  smoke  went  through  a  hole  in  the 
roof  of  his  cabin,  and  he  was  called  Old  Flour. 

No  one  but  they  Avho  had  lived  on  Elm  Island 
could  imagine  what  a  convenience  the  Persever- 

O 

ance,  Jr.  had  become.     Indeed,  not  a  member  of 
18 


274    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

the  family  would  have  parted  with  her  for  any 
consideration. 

Sunday  morning,  no  matter  if  it  was  quite  rough, 
they  would  all  but  Sally  Merrithew  or  Mrs.  Rhines, 
get  in  and  go  to  meeting.  On  pleasant  days  they 
would  take  the  baby,  and  then  all  could  go.  If  it 
was  calm  it  did  not  matter  in  the  least.  Ben 
would  take  two  oars,  and,  sitting  on  the  forward 
thwart,  row  cross-handed,  while  Charlie  would  pull 
one  oar  aft,  and  Sally,  assisted,  or  rather  bothered, 
by  Ben,  Jr.,  would  steer. 

The  boat  had  not  been  in  the  water  a  week 
before  Mrs.  Rhines  and  Mary  discovered  that  they 
had  never  seen  the  baby,  and  must  see  it;  and 
Charlie  had  to  bring  them  on. 

It  was  so  convenient,  too,  for  Sally's  mother, 
who  was  no  more  afraid  of  the  water  than  a  coot, 
to  come  and  see  her  daughter!  and  even  Mrs. 
Rhines,  naturally  timorous  on  the  water,  was  not 
afraid  to  come  in  that  boat. 

Tige  came  on  with  the  Rhines  girls.  He 
wanted  to  see  the  baby ;  and  such  a  frolic  as  he  had 
with  Ben,  Jr.,  and  the  little  one  you  never  saw! 
Tige  played  rather  rough.  Every  once  in  a  while 
he  would  get  the  whole  top  of  Bennie's  head  into 
his  mouth,  and  scrape  the  scalp  with'the  points  of 


CHARLIK    IN     THE    SHIP-YARD.  275 

his  teeth,  till  the  child  would  sing  out  at  the  top 
of  his  voice,  and  quit  playing  till  it  had  done  smart 
ing,  and  then  begin  with  new  zeal.  Bennie  had  a 
great  chunk  of  meat  that  Tige  wanted  ;  but  Ben 
wouldn't  give  it  to  him.  Tige  followed  him  round, 
and  when  his  attention  was  occupied,  licked  it  out 
of  his  hand  ;  but  before  he  could  swallow  it,  Ben 
got  hold  of  one  half,  and  it  was  which  and  t'other, 
till,  Ben's  fingers  slipping  on  the  greasy  meat,  he 
went  over  backwards  on  the  floor,  and  the  meat 
disappeared  down  Tige's  throat  in  a  moment. 

The  child,  provoked,  began  to  strike  him ;  but  all 
the  notice  Tige  took  of  it  was  to  wag  his  tail  in 
complacent  triumph,  and  lick  the  child's  greasy 
fingers. 

"  It  wouldn't  be  a  very  safe  operation  for  a  man 
to  pull  meat  out  of  Tige's  mouth,  and  strike  him 
in  that  way,"  said  Ben,  patting  fondly  the  noble 
brute  ;  "  his  life  wouldn't  be  worth  much." 

While  Charlie  was  thus  pleasantly  and  profitably 
occupied  in  boat-building,  a  cousin  of  Captain 
Rhines,  Mr.  Foss,  who  was  employed  in  ship-build 
ing  at  Stroudwater,  came  to  visit  him.  Captain 
Rhines  brought  him  on  to  the  island  to  sec  Ben. 
He  conceived  a  great  liking  for  Charlie,  who  then 
had  two  boats*  set  up  in  the  shop,  and  partly  done. 


276    THE    YOTJXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Charlie,  in  the  course  of  conversation,  told  him  of 
his  desire  and  intention  one  day  to  become  a  ship 
builder. 

"  If  that  is  your  intention,"  was  the  reply  of  Mr. 
Foss,  "  you  have  worked  long  enough  on  boats." 

"  Why  so,  sir ;  is  it  not  much  the  same  thing  ?  " 

"  Not  by  any  means ;  the  proportions  are  very 
different.  A  full  boat  would  be  a  very  sharp  ship 
—  too  sharp:  the  scale  is  larger,  and  the  distances 
longer.  What  would  be  a  proper  dead  rise  in  a 
boat  would  be  quite  another  thing,  come  to  let  it 
run  the  length  'of  a  vessel's  floor,  three  times  as 
wide  as  the  whole  boat.  I'm  going  to  set  up  a 
vessel  when  I  go  back  ;  if  you  will  go  with  me  and 
work  till  spring,  I'll  give  you  good  wages,  and 
learn  you  all  I  know ;  with  the  practice  you  have 
had  on  boats,  you  will  learn  very  fast." 

Ben  expressed  his  willingness. 

"But  I  have  these  boats  to  finish." 

"Mr.  Foss  will  not  go  for  a  week;  what  is  not 
done  by  that  time,  I  will  do." 

"What  will  you  do,  if  I  take  the  tools?" 

"You  need  take  no  more  than  a  broadaxe,  adze, 
square,  rule,  and  compasses,"  said  Mr.  Foss  ;  "  I've 
got  tools  enough." 

It  was  so  late  in  the  year,  Ben  thought  he  should 


CHARLIE    IN    THE    SHIP-YARD.  277 

not  be  able  to  cross  to  the  main  land  much  more, 
ami  told  them  to  take  the  boat. 

They  accordingly  furnished  themselves  with 
provision,  water,  and  a  compass,  and  set  out,  Charlie 
consoling  himself  for  leaving  Elm  Island  by  the 
prospect  of  being  only  three  or  four  miles  from 
John. 

He  was  now  to  leave  Elm  Island  for  the  first 
time  since  he  came  on  to  it,  and  he  went  all 
around  to  take  a  last  look  at  his  pets,  and  bid  them 
"good  by,"  and  even  to  the  top  of  the  old  maple 
and  big  pine,  where  he  had  spent  so  many  happy 
hours. 

They  had  a  pleasant  time  up,  either  a  fair  wind 
or  calm,  did  not  have  to  row  but  little  till  they  ran 
her  right  into  Stroudwater  liiver,  and  into  the 
ship-yard. 

The  next  Saturday  evening  about  eight  o'clock, 
John  Rhines  was  told  that  some  one  wished  to  see 
him  at  the  door;  and  going  without  a  light,  he 
landed  in  the  embrace  of  Charlie. 

The  moment  they  were  alone,  Charlie  said, — 

"  Guess  what  I  have  done  since  you  came  away." 

"  Built  a  boat." 

"  Yes  ;  I've  sold  her,  and  built  five  more  ;  sold 
all  but  one  of  them,  and  I  came  up  in  her" 


278    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

"  What  a  boy  you  are,  Charlie  !  We'll  have  some 
sails  in  her;  there's  a  glorious  chance  to  sail  in 
this  harbor  in  the  summer,  and  a  splendid  fishing 
ground.  There  are  lots  of  acorns  on  Hog  Island, 
and  walnuts  on  Mackie's  Island." 

"  Yes  ;  but  guess  what  else  I've  done." 

"  It's  no  use  to  guess,  you  do  so  many  things." 

«  Bought  a  farm." 

"  Bought  a  farm !  " 

"  Yes,  and  paid  for  it !  almost  four  hundred  acres ; 
all  kinds  of  land.  O,  the  prettiest  harbor!  and  a 
pond,  a  brook,  and  the  handsomest  elm  tree  you 
ever  saw.  All  kinds  of  land,  and  bears  on  it,  John  ; 
only  think,  bears  on  it,  and  wolves.  O,  I  forgot  a 
little  duck  of  an  island,  where  the  Indians  made 
canoes." 

"  Is  there  a  great  long  point  that  crooks  round 
like  a  horseshoe  ?  and  does  the  elm  stand  on  a 
little  tongue  that  the  water  runs  almost  round  ?  " 

"Just  so." 

"  O,  I  know  ;  that's  a  splendid  place !  I've  been 
there  many  a  time,  frost-fishing.  Cross-root  Spring 
is  there,  a  regular  boiling  spring  ;  but  I  never  was 
far  from  the  beach.  I  didn't  know  there  was 
a  pond." 

"Now,  John,  some  time  when  we  get  through 


CHAELIE    IX    THE    SHIP-YARD.  279 

here,  you,  and  I,  and  Fred  will  go  and  have  a 
chowder  there ;  go  all  over  it,  and  have  a  good 
time." 

After  this  they  spent  Sundays  together,  and  sat 
side  by  side  at  meeting. 

When  Charlie  began  to  work  at  Stroudwater  the 
timber  was  not  cut;  thus  he  had  an  opportunity  to 
help  cut  the  timber,  and  begin  at  the  foundation. 
Modern  improvements  were  unknown  then,  and 
he  found  Mr.  Foss  built  his  vessels  very  much  as 
he  built  his  bonts — by  setting  up  stem  and  stern 
posts,  a  few  frames,  and  working  by  ribbands. 

It  was  late  in  the  fall  when  Charlie  went  away, 
and  Ben  was  obliged  to  work  on  the  boats  when 
he  ought  to  have  been  putting  his  winter  wood 
under  cover.  The  moment  the  boats  were  done, 
he  hauled  up  an  enormous  pile  of  wood,  both  green 
and  dry,  and  had  cut  up  a  good  part  of  the  dry, 
when  there  came  a  great  fall  of  snow  and  covered 
it  all  up;  and  not  only  so,  but  the  dry  chips  that 
had  come  from  hewing  the  frame  of  the  shed, 
which  were  scattered  over  the  ground,  and  that 
lie  meant  to  have  put  under  cover.  Thus  the 
wood  was  all  covered  up  in  snow,  and  the  new 
wood-shed  stood  empty. 

Sally  Merrithew  had  returned  home;  the  snow 


280    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

was  deep ;  the  weather,  though  fair,  extremely  cold ; 
and  communication  between  Elm  Island  and  the 
main  pretty  much  suspended.  Joe  Griffin  Avas 
building  a  log-house  on  his  own  land ;  but  the 
snow  being  so  deep  that  it  was  quite  difficult  to 
work  in  the  woods,  Peter  Brock  had  persuaded 
him  to  assist  in  making  axes. 

Uncle  Jonathan  Smullen  lived  about  half  way 
between  Joe's  father's  and  the  blacksmith's  shop, 
on  a  little  rise,  just  where  the  road  makes  a  short 
turn  and  goes  down  to  Peterson's  spring.  Thus 
Joe  passed  the  house  several  times  a  day,  going  to 
and  returning  from  labor. 

Sally  Merrithew  did  not  approve  of  his  practical 
jokes:  he  knew  it,  and  endeavored  with  all  his 
might  to  restrain  himself.  It  was  now  a  long  time 
since  Joe  had  been  uncorked,  and  Sally  was  be 
ginning  to  hope  he  never  would  be  again. 

Uncle  Smullen  had  a  cross  ram :  he  would  often 
run  at  the  old  man,  who,  being  old  and  clumsy,  was 
afraid  of  him.  The  barn-yard  was  very  large, 
being  used  for  both  sheep  and  cattle.  In  the  mid 
dle  was  a  large  patch  of  ice.  The  old  man  had 
stocking  feet  drawn  over  his  shoes,  to  prevent  slip 
ping,  and  whenever  the  ram  made  demonstrations, 
would  run  on  the  ice ;  the  ram,  unable  to  follow, 


CIIAELIE    IN    THE    SHIP- YARD.  281 

would  stand  at  the  edge  and  keep  him  there  till 
some  one  came,  or  the  rani  got  tired. 

Half  the  cause  of  the  trouble  was,  that  the  ram 
wanted  the  hens'  corn,  and,  because  the  old  man 
wouldn't  let  him  have  any,  meant  to  proceed  to 
blows.  Joe,  finding  the  old  gentleman  beleaguered 
one  day,  relieved  him. 

"  The  pesky  creetur,  Mr.  Griffin,  has  kept  me  here 
most  all  the  forenoon." 

"  I'd  cut  his  head  off." 

"  I  would,  Joseph  ;  but  he's  an  excellent  breed ;  I 
bought  him  of  Seth  Dingley." 

This  incident  suggested  an  idea  to  Joe's  but  too 
fertile  brain  in  an  instant.  The  spirit  of  mischief 
invigorated  by  a  long  repose,  and  with  difficulty 
suppressed,  rose  in  arms.  That  night  he  made 
shoes  for  the  ram's  feet,  with  sharp  calks,  and  nails 
to  put  them  on  with.  Mr.  Smullen  was  very 
methodical  in  his  habits,  and  Joe  was  well  ac- 
quainted  with  them. 

It  was  his  custom,  before  .turning  the  cattle  out 
in  the  forenoon,  to  put  a  little  salt  hay  in  the  yard 
for  the  sheep,  then  carry  out  the  corn  for  the  hens, 
and  bring  in  the  eggs  in  the  same  measure;  and  he 
never  varied  a  hair's  breadth. 

After  Bobby  had  gone  to  school,  Joe  went  into 


282    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

the  sheep-house,  nailed  the  shoes  on  the  ram,  and 
after  plaguing  and  irritating  him  till  he  was 
thoroughly  mad,  hid  himself  behind  the  log  fence, 
in  the  sun,  to  see  what  would  come  of  it. 

The  ram  did  not  offer  to  molest  the  old  gentle 
man  while  he  was  bringing  out  the  hay.  Soon 
afterwards  he  came  out  with  a  wooden  bowl  full  of 
corn,  going  to  the  barn,  when  the  ram  started 
for  him. 

"You  won't  catch  me  this  time,  you  pesky 
sarpint  you,"  said  the  old  gentleman,  quickening 
his  pace  for  the  ice,  and  soon  reached  what  he  sup 
posed  his  harbor  of  safety.  The  brute  had  found 
out  he  was  shod,  and  running  backward  half  the 
length  of  the  yard  to  obtain  momentum,  rushed 
forward  and  struck  the  old  gentleman  in  the  rear 
with  the  force  of  a  battering-ram.  Away  went  the 
corn  in  all  directions  over  the  yard,  to  the  manifest 
delight  of  the  hungry  sheep.  Uncle  Smullen  Jay 
prostrate  on  the  ice:  one  half  the  wooden  bowl 
flew  over  the  fence,  the  other  into  the  water 
trough,  while  the  ram,  who  had  exerted  his  utmost 
strength  in  a  dead  rush,  not  meeting  with  the 
resistance  upon  which  he  had  calculated,  turning 
a  summerset  upon  the  body  of  his  antagonist,  went 
end  over  end.  Before  he  could  pick  himself  up, 


CHARLIE    IN    THE    SHIP-YARD.  283 

he  was  seized  by  Joseph,  and  flung  into  the 
barn. 

The  moment  Joe  saw  Uncle  Smullen  fall,  his 
better  nature  awoke :  hastening  to  his  aid,  he 
inquired,  — 

"Are  you  much  hurt,  Uncle  Jonathan?" 

"  I  don't  know !  I'm  in  hopes  there  ain't  no 
bones  broke  ;  it's  a  marcy  there  ain't.  If  I'd  gone 
backwards,  it  would  sartainly  have  killed  me." 

"  Your  face  is  bleeding,"  said  Joe,  wiping  it  with 
his  handkerchief. 

"Yes;  I'm  terribly  shook  all  over,  and  I  feel 
kind  o'  faint." 

The  old  man  was  bruised  on  his  forehead,  and 
his  lip  was  cut  by  the  edge  of  the  bowl ;  but 
though  much  frightened,  he  was  not  seriously 
injured. 

Joe  took  him  in  his  arms,  and  carried  him  into 
the  house,  secretly  resolving  that  this  should  be 
the  last  thing  of  the  kind  he  would  ever  be 
guilty  of. 

Depositing  the  old  man  on  the  bed,  he  went  to 
the  barn  and  tore  the  shoes  off  the  ram's  feet, 
but,  in  his  haste  to  get  back,  dropped  one  on  the 
floor  of  the  tie-up. 

"  I   thought   I   was   safe    on   that   spot   of  ice, 


284    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Joseph.  He  never  followed  me  there  before.  I 
didn't  think  he  could  stand  on  the  ice." 

"  You  see  he  couldn't  very  well,"  replied  Joe, 
who  was  in  agony  lest  his  agency  in  the  matter 
should  get  wind;  "for  you  see  he  went  end  over 
end." 

"  We  ought  to  be  thankful,''  said  Mrs.  Sinullen, 
"it's  no  worse.  There  was  old  Mrs.  Aspinwall 
broke  her  hip  only  by  treading  on  a  pea,  and  fail 
ing  down  on  her  own  floor.  What  we're  going  to 
do  about  wood  and  the  cattle  I'm  sure  I  don't 
know !  I'm  so  lame,  I  couldn't  milk  to  save  my 
life." 

"Don't  worry  the  least  mite  about  the  cattle, 
Mrs.  Smullen.  I'll  take  care  of  them,  and  cut  you 
up  a  lot  of  wood." 

"  I'm  sure  I  don't  know  how  we  shall  ever  repay 
you,  Joseph.  It's  of  the  Lord's  marcies  you  hap 
pened  to  be  here." 

This  was  perfect  torture  to  Joe.  His  cheeks 
burned,  and  his  conscience  stuns;. 

'  O 

"I'm  sure,"  said  the  old  man,  "I  don't  know 
what  I  shall  do  with  that  ram,  now  he's  got  to  be 
master." 

"  I'll  take  care  of  him,"  said  Joe. 

He  persuaded  Sally  Merrithew  to  go  there,  and 


CHARLIE    IX    THE    SHIP-YARD.  285 

stay  till  tlie  old  gentleman  got  better,  then  went 
and  tied  the  ram's  legs,  and,  flinging  him  on  his 
shoulders,  carried  him  over  to  his  father's. 

Sally  was  a  girl  of  keen  wit  and  excellent  judg 
ment.  She  had  not  the  least  doubt  but  that,  in 
some  way  or  other,  Joe  Griffin  was  at  the  bottom 
of  the  whole  matter. 

"How  came  he  there  at  that  time  of  day, 
when  he  ought  to  have  been  in  Peter  Brock's 
shop?"  was  the  query  she  raised  in  her  own  mind. 
His  assiduous  attentions  to  the  old  people  had  to 
her  a  suspicious  look,  and  appeared  very  much  like 
nn  effort  to  atone  for  an  injury.  The  ram  had 
never  ventured  on  the  ice  before- — how  came  he  to 
then?  Still  these  sm'mises  afforded  not  a  shadow 
of  proof.'  She  was  greatly  perplexed. 

One  morning  she  was  milking,  and,  perceiving 
that  her  pail  didn't  set  even  on  the  floor,  moved  it, 
and  underneath  was  one  of  the  ram's  shoes  that 
Joe  had  dropped.  In  an  instant  she  had  a  clew  to 
the  mystery.  Perceiving  that  no  one  was  in  sight, 
she  went  to  the  spot  of  ice,  found  the  prints  of  the 
ram's  corks,  and  compared  them  with  the  shoe. 

"What  a  creature  he  is!"  said  Sally.  "I  was 
in  hopes  he  had  left  off  such  things,  after  having 
been  most  smothered  in  a  honey-pot,  and  scorched 


286    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDKKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

in  the  brush.  He's  broke  out  again,  worse  than 
ever." 

Sunday  night  he  came  to  see  her,  as  usual. 

"Joe,"  said  she,  "do  they  shoe  at  Peter's 
shop  ?  " 

"Yes,  Peter  shoes  lots  of  horses ;  but  they  go 
round  to  the  houses  to  shoe  oxen,  carry  the  shoes 
and  nails,  and  cast  the  cattle  in  the  barn  floor " 
(slings  were  not  in  use  then)  "to  nail  them  on." 

"Do  they  ever  shoe  rams?" 

Joe's  features  instantly  assumed  a  terrified  ex 
pression.  He  colored  to  the  very  tips  of  his  ears, 
but  uttered  no  word. 

"If,"  said  Sally,  "it  had  been  Ben  Rhines,  Seth 
Warren,  Charlie,  or  anybody  that  could  have  taken 
their  own  part ;  but  to  set  to  work  on  that  poor  old 
man,  one  of  the  kindest  men  that  ever  lived,  who 
took  in  that  miserable  Pete  Clash,  and  clothed  him, 
when  he  had  no  place  to  put  his  head,  and  whom 
everybody  loves,  to  run  the  risk  of  killing  or 
crippling  him  for  life,  I  say  it's  real  mean ! " 

Joe  made  no  reply,  and  Sally  saw  something 
very  much  like  a  tear  in  his  eye.  She  pitied  him 
from  the  bottom  of  her  heart,  but  felt  that  for  the 
reformation  of  such  an  incorrigible  sinner  it  "svas 
her  duty  to  go  on. 


CHAKLIK    IX    THE    SHIP- YARD.  287 

"  Did  you  ever  see  that  before  ?  "  she  inquired, 
holding  before  the  terrified  culprit  the  identical 
shoe,  with  the  nails  still  sticking  in  it. 

Joe  uttered  a  groan. 

"If  it  should  get  out,  the  neighbors  would  never 
speak  to  you  again,  and  you'd  have  to  leave  town. 
I  know  you  feel  bad,"  she  continued,  bursting  into 
tears ;  "  but  what  did  put  it  into  your  head  ?  " 

"  The  devil." 

"Well,  I'd  keep  better  company." 

"  You  see,  Sally,  I  was  going  home  to  dinner  one 
day,  and  the  ram  had  the  old  man  penned  on  the 
ice,  and  there  they  stood  looking  at  each  other. 
That's  what  put  it  into  my  head.  I  didn't  think 
anything  about  the  consequences  till  I  saw  the  ram 
start  for  him.  Then  it  all  came  to  me,  and  I  was 
over  the  fence  in  a  minute;  but  it  was  too  late.  I 
don't  think  I'm  made  like  other  folks.  Such  things 
come  over  me  just  like  lightning,  and  it  seems  as 
if  I  was  hurried.  This  is  the  last  shine  I  shall  ever 
cut  up." 

"  You've  said  so  before,  Joe." 

"  But  I  mean  it  rio\v  ;  I'm  purposed.  "Won't  you 
give  me  that  shoe,  Sally  V  " 

"  No,  Joe,  I'm  going  to  keep  it ;  and  as  sure  as 
you  cut  up  another  shine,  I'll  show  it." 


288    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

Joe's  reformation  was  radical  this  time,  and 
Sally  ventured  to  marry  him.  Years  after — when 
Mrs.  Griffin  —  Sally  Rhines  was  visiting  her.  In 
hunting  over  her  drawers  to  find  a  pattern  of  a 
baby's  dress,  she  came  across  the  shoe,  and  then  it 
came  out.  She  gave  it  to  the  baby  to  play  with. 

"  I  should  be  afraid  to  give  it  to  him,"  said  Mrs. 
Rhines,  "  for  fear  he'd  catch  something,  and  go  to 
cutting  up  shines  when  he  grows  up." 


CHARLIE    IN    THE    SHIP-YARD.  289 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  FIRST  TROUBLE,  AND  THE  FIRST  PRATER. 

BEING  somewhat  lonely  in  the  absence  of. Char 
lie,  Ben  employed  himself  in  getting  timber  to 
build  a  scow,  that  he  meant  to  construct  with  a. 
mast,  sails,  and  a  sliding-keel,  or,  as  they  are  now 
termed,  centre-boards,  to  take  cattle  and  hay  to  and 
from  Griffin's  Island. 

Uncle  Isaac  and  Captain Rhines  came  on  New 
Year's  Day.  They  told  Ben  and  Sally  it  was  so 
cold,  and  the  weather  uncertain,  that  they  needn't 
expect  to  see  them  again  till  April. 

The  next  day,  Dan  forth  Eaton  and  two  more 
came  and  hired  the  Perseverance.  Ben  told  them, 
when  they  were  done  with  her,  to  leave  her  in 
Captain  Rhincs's  Cove. 

They  were  now  left  entirely  alone.  During  the 
latter  part  of  the  same  week,  Ben,  who  had  been 
out  gunning  all  day,  crawling  round  on  the  rocks, 
and  getting  wet,  complained  at  night  of  pain  in 
his  head  and  back,  and  of  chilliness.  lie  made  use 
19 


290    THE    YOUXG    SHIF-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

of  the  usual  remedies  for  a  cold,  but  without  avail. 
He  continued  to.  grow  worse  rapidly,  and  it  was 
evident  that  he  was  to  have  a  run  of  fever.  Sally 
was  in  great  extremity,  her  husband  dangerously 
sick,  neither  physician  nor  medicine  at  hand,  —  save 
those  simple  remedies  that  necessity  had  taught 
our  mothers,  —  with  two  children,  one  a  baby,  a 
stock -of  cattle  to  take  care  of,  and  utterly  alone  as 
respected  any  human  aid.  It  was  a  bitter  thought 
to  her,  as  she  sat  listening  to  the  wanderings  of  her 
husband  she  tenderly  loved,  and  for  whom  she  had 
sacrificed  so  much,  that,  while  so  rich  in  friends, 
all  were  ignorant  of  their  necessity. 

"If  they  only  knew  it  at  home,"  said  she  to  her 
self,  "how  soon  should  I  see  the  Perseverance's 
sails  going  up,  and  help  coming  !  " 

Sally  had  not  what  is  sometimes  termed  a  reli 
gious  temperament.  There  was  no  sentiment  about 
her.  She  was  extremely  conscientious  in  respect 
to  keeping  the  Sabbath,  or  making  light  of  serious 
things,  was  very  decided  in  all  her  convictions,  and 
never  temporized.  If  it  Avas  wrong  to  do  anything, 
it  was  wrong,  and  that  was  the  end  of  it  with  her. 
She  never  read  religious  books  from  choice, — like 
many  who  never  arrive  at  any  satisfactory  results 
in  religious  matters,  —  but  only  as  a  duty,  as  she 


FIRST    TROUBLE    AND    FIRST    PRAYER.          291 

did  the  Bible.  She  never  cared  to  hear  religious 
conversation,  and,  though  she  listened  with  the 
greatest  respect  to  her  mother  in  relation  to  these 
subjects,  it  went  in  at  one  ear  and  out  at  the  other. 
Uncle  Isaac's  description  of  her  was  perfect.  She 
was  lively  as  a  humming-bird,  and  had  too  good  a 
time  of  it  in  this  world  to  think  much  about  the 
other.  But  under  the  terrible  pressure  that  now 
came  upon  her,  the  resolute  nature  and  iron  frame 
of. the  true-hearted,  loving  woman  began  to  give 
way. 

With  the  exception  of  some  large  logs  for  back 
logs,  the  wood  which  was  cut  was  exhausted,  and 
she  was  obliged  to  dig  it  from  the  snow  and  cut  it. 

O  O 

The  great  fireplace  was  so  deep,  it  was  impossi 
ble  to  keep  the  room  warm  without  a  large  log  to 
bring  the  fire  forward,  and  throw  the  heat  into  the 
room.  These  logs,  which  were  three  feet  through, 
Sally  hauled  into  the  house  on  a  hand-sled,  and 
rolled  into  the  fireplace,  then  cut  up  the  rest  of  the 
wood  to  complete  the  fire. 

The  weather  was  intensely  cold,  the  snow  deep 
and  drifted,  and  she  was  obliged  to  drive  the  cattle 
to  the  brook,  and  cut  holes  in  the  ice  for  them  to 
drink.  In  addition  to  all  this  w.ts  the  care  of 
Bennic  and  the  baby,  the  constant  watching,  and 


292    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

sense  of  loneliness.  What  a  commentary  was  this 
upon  the  declaration  of  Uncle  Isaac  to  Ben,  in 
reply  to  the  expression  of  his  fears  lest  the  untried 
hardships  of  Elm  Island  should  prove  too  much  for 
Sally,  - 

"  O,  she's  got  the  old  iron  nature  of  that  breed 
of  folks.  She's  had  nothing  to  call  out  that  grit 
yet;  but  you'll  find  out  what  she's  made  of  when 
she  comes  to  be  put  to't." 

Her  husband  was  now  so  much  reduced  that  it 
was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  she  could  hear  his 
requests,  and  the  apprehension  that  he  would  die, 
which  had  tortured  her  for  weeks,  now  seemed 
ripening  into  certainty. 

It  was  just  before  midnight.  Ben  had  lain  since 
morning  in  a  stupor,  from  which  it  seemed  impos 
sible  to  rouse  him,  and,  being  nearly  high  water, 
she  feared  he  would  die  when  the  tide  turned. 

It  was  a  fearful  night.  The  roar  of  the  sea  on 
the  rocks,  with  that  hoarse,  pitiless  sound  which 
pei'tains  to  the  surf,  and  the  hollow  moan  of  the 
wind  in  the  forest  was  heard  all  through  the  house. 
Sally  had  been  taught  to  say  her  prayers  from 
childhood,  but  never  in  all  her  life  had  she  prayed 
in  her  own  words.  But  now,  as  she  sat  with  the 
Bible  upon  her  knees,  and  her  eye  caught  the 


FIRST    TliOUBLE    AND    FIRST    PRAYER.          293 

promise,  "  Ask  and  ye  shall  receive,"  something 
seemed  to  whisper,  "  Pray,  poor  woman,  pray." 
"  Had  I  shown  any  gratitude  for  His  mercies," 
thought  she,  "I  might  with  more  confidence  resort 
to  Him  in  trouble."  At  length,  driven  to  despair, 
she  fell  on  her  knees  beside  the  bed,  and  begged  for 
mercy  and  help  from  heaven.  "I  am  glad  I  did  it," 
said  Sally,  as  she  rose  from  her  knees ;  "  I  think  I  now 
know  something  of  what  I  have  heard  mother  say 
—  that  the  best  place  to  carry  a  sore  heart  is  to  the 
cross.  I  don't  kno\v  what  God  will  do  with  me, 
but  I  feel  more  willing  to  be  in  His  hands.  What 
a  strange  thing  praying  is  !  If  you  don't  get  what 
you  ask,  you  get  comfort.  It  kind  of  takes  the 
sting  out.  It's  like  as  when  I  was  burnt  so  awful 
ly,  and  the  fire  was  out ;  the  anguish  is  abated, 
though  the  wound  is  not  healed.  I  will  pray  more, 
and  trust  more."  She  spent  the  remainder  of  the 
night  in  prayer  and  reading  the  Scriptures. 

The  wind,  shortly  after  midnight,  had  changed 
to  north-west,  and,  though  bitterly  cold,  it  became 
clear.  As  the  light  of  morning  struggled  through 
the  windows,  Sally  scraped  the  thick  coating  of 
frost  from  the  panes,  that  she  might  sec  her  hus 
band's  face,  and  eagerly  scanned  the  pallid  features. 
"lie  certainly  does  not  look  so  death-like,"  thought 


294    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

she,  "  is  not  feverish  at  all,  and  he  certainly  breathes 
better."  In  the  course  of  an  hour,  he  made  a  sign 
for  drink.  She  put  it  to  his  lips,  and  found  that  he 
swallowed.  A  short  time  after,  she  gave  him  some 
nourishment,  which  he  also  took.  When  a  couple 
of  hours  had  passed,  he  opened  his  eyes.  She  bent 
her  ear  to  his  lips,  and  asked  him  how  he  felt. 
"  Better,"  was  the  reply,  in  a  voice  scarcely  audible. 
It  was  the  first  word  he  had  spoken  for  two  days. 
"The  fever  has  turned,  I  know  it  has!  "  she  cried  ; 
and  falling  on  her  knees,  she  poured  out  her  heart 
in  gratitude  to  God.  Just  then  the  child  waked, 
"  O,  you  blessed  little  soul,"  cried  the  delighted 
mother,  almost  smothering  it  with  kisses,  "did 
you  know  your  father  was  better?"  And  tying 
the  young  child  in  a  chair,  and  giving  it  some  play 
things,  she  caught  the  milk-pail.  As  she  opened 
the  door,  a  ray  of  sunshine  flashed  in  her  face,  and 
streamed  across  the  threshold.  "Bless  God!" 
cried  she,  tears  of  gladness  streaming  down  he- 
cheeks;  "it's  sunshine  in  my  heart  this  morning." 
"  How  are  you  all  ?  "  said  Sally,  as  she  entered 
the  barn,  and,  mounting  with  rapid  steps  the  mow, 
pitched  down  a  bountiful  foddering  to  the  cattle. 
"Put  that  into  you;  it's  Thanksgiving  on  this 
island  to-day."  While  Sailor,  catching  the  altered 


FIRST    TROUBLE    AND    FIRST    PRAYER.          295 

looks  and  tone  of  his  mistress,  barked,  and  ran 
into  the  snow  till  nothing  but  the  end  of  his  tail 
was  to  be  seen. 

"How  strong  I  feel  this  morning!"  she  ex 
claimed,  rolling  an  enormous  log  on  to  the  hand- 
sled;  "I'll  make  this  old  fireplace  roar.  I'll  have 
some  light  in  this  room,  so  that  I  can  see  Ben's 
face.  I  have  not  dared  to  look  at  him  for  a  month 
past,"  catching  a  cloth,  wet  with  hot  water,  and 
washing  the  frost  from  the  windows.  "I'll  wash 
up  this  floor,  too  ;  it  is  dirty  enough  to  plant  pota 
toes  on;  and  then  I'll  have  a  nap." 

In  the  afternoon,  Ben  awoke  in  the  full  posses 
sion  of  his  faculties,  though  extremely  weak,  and 
in  a  whisper  asked  for  the  baby;  he  then  asked  for 
Sailor.  Sally  had  kept  the  dog  in  the  outer  room, 
that  he  might  not  disturb  her  husband;  but  the 
moment  she  opened  the  door,  he  leaped  on  the 
bed,  and  licked  his  master's  hands  and  face,  and 
then,  rolling  himself  into  a  ball  at  his  feet,  went  to 
sleep,  occasionally  opening  one  eye  to  see  if  his 
master  \vas  there. 

It  was  now  the  first  of  March.  The  brigantine 
General  Knox,  Edward  Ililler,  master,  was  working 
her  way  to  the  eastward.  She  was  homeward 
bound  from  Matanzas,  having  lain  in  Portland 


296    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

during  a  severe  gale,  where  she  had  discharged 
her  cargo.  A  heavy  sea  was  still  running,  and 
the  vessel,  close  hauled  on  the  wind,  and  under 
short  sail,  being  light,  was  knocking  about  at  a 
great  rate.  Captain  Hiller  had  been  from  boyhood 
a  deep-water  sailor,  but,  having  married  the  year 
before,  took  a  smaller  vessel,  traded  to  the  West 
Indies  in  winter,  and  coasted  in  the  summer.  He 
was  now  bound  home  for  a  summer's  coasting, 
having  his  brother  Sam  for  mate,  and  a  crew 
composed  of  his  neighbors'  boys,  two  of  whom, 
John  Reed  and  Frank  Wood,  were  his  cousins. 
Captain  Hiller  was  amusing  himself  with  humming 
the  old  capstan  ditty,  — 

"  Storm  along,  my  hearty  crew, 
Storm  along,  stormy,"  — 

in  tones  which  sounded  like  a  nor'wester,  whistling 
through  a  grommet-hole,  at  times  varying  his 
occupation  by  sweeping  the  horizon  with  his  glass. 
At  length  he  said  to  the  man  at  the  helm,  — 

"John,  what  island  is  that  on  the  lee  bow?" 

"Don't  know,  sir." 

"  I'll  ask  our  Sam :  he  is  pilot  all  along  shore, 
and  knows  every  rock,  and  everybody.  Sam, 
come  aft  here." 


FIKST    TROUBLE    AND    FIEST  PRAYER.          297 

«  Ay,  ay,  sir." 

"  What  island  is  that  to  leeward?" 

"  Elm  Island,  captain." 

"Docs  anybody  live  there?" 

"Yes,  sir;  Ben  III  lines." 

"What  Ben  Rhines?" 

"  Him  they  call  Lion." 

"That  can't  be,  Sam:  he  took  his  father's  ship 
when  the  old  man  gave  up;  there  ain't  his  equal 
along  shore.  I've  been  "shipmates"  with  him: 
lie  wouldn't  be  living  on  such  a  place  as  that." 

"  It  is  so,  captain  ;  he  was  offered  the  ship  ;  but 
like  another  man  I  know  of,  that  is  a  relation  to 
me,  he  fell  in  love  with  a  pretty  girl,  who  vowed 
she  wouldn't  marry  him  if  he  went  to  sea.  And 
so  he  bought  that  island,  married  the  girl,  and  has 
turned  farmer.  There's  some  trouble  there  ;  I  can 
see  a  woman  on  the  beach,  and  she  has  got  a  petti 
coat —  that's  the  flag  of  all  nations  —  on  an  oar,  and 
is  making  signals." 

"  If  my  old  shipmate  is  in  trouble,  I'm  there. 
Keep  her  off  for  the  island,  John.  Flow  the  main 
sheet,  and  set  the  colors  in  the  main  rigging,  and 
then  she'll  know  we  see  her  signals." 

The  vessel,  with  the  wind  free,  increased  her 
speed,  but  not  sufficiently  to  suit  the  impatience 
uf  the  noble-hearted  seaman,  who  exclaimed, — 


298    THE    YOUXG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

"  Shake  the  reefs  out  of  the  mainsail !  loose  the 
fore-topsail!  Why,  how  slow  you  move  to  help  ;i 
neighbor!  Sam,  do  you  know  the  way  in  there? 
It  seems  to  be  all  breakers." 

"  I  know  the  way,  captain  ;  there's  water  enough." 

"  Then  shove  her  in  :  we'll  soon  know  what's  the 
matter." 

Ben,  propped  up  with  pillows,  and  now  able  to 
converse,  received  with  heartfelt  joy  his  old  ship 
mate,  who  sat  down  beside  him,  while  the  young 
men  gazed  with  awe  upon  the  great  bones  and 
muscles,  made  prominent  by  the  wasting  of  the 
flesh,  and  called  to  mind  the  wonderful  stories  they 
had  heard  of  his  strength. 

"  What  do  you  think  of  that,  boys,  for  «i  lion's 
paw?"  said  the  captain,  taking  up  Ben's  right  arm, 
and  showing  it  to  the  astonished  group.  "Now, 
Mrs.  Rhines,"  said  he,  "  do  you  get  a  couple  of 
axes,  and  John  and  Frank  will  cut  some  wood, 
while  Sam  and  myself  get  your  husband  up,  and 
put  some  clean  clothes  on  him,  and  I  will  shave 
him ;  then  you  can  make  the  bed,  and  we  will  put 
him  back ;  for  I  suppose  he  has  not  been  moved 
since  he  was  taken  sick." 

"  No,"  said  Sally ;  "  it  was  impossible  for  me  to 
move  him." 


FIRST    TROUBLE    AND    FIRST    PRAYER.  299 

These  strong  and  willing  hands  soon  put  a  now 
face  on  matters.  With  a  roaring  fire  in  the  old 
fireplace,  clean  linen  on  the  bed,  the  house  put  to 
rights,  lien  shaved,  and  his  spirits  excited  by  hope, 
everything  seemed  cheerful. 

"Frank,"  said  the  captain,  "go  aboard,  and  in 
my  berth  you'll  find  a  pot  of  tamaiinds  and  a  box 
of  guava  jelly  ;  they'll  be  just  the  stuff  for  him  :  I 
got  them  fresh  in  Matanzas." 

"Frank,"  said  Sam,  "get  a  couple  dozen  oranges 
out  of  my  chest." 

"Don't  you  do  it,  Frank,"  said  John  Reed  ;  "get 
them  out  of  mine  :  he  is  courting  a  girl ;  but  I  ain't 
so  happv.  I  haven't  anybody  to  give  mine  to." 

"Captain,"  said  Ben,  "you  will  dine  with  us." 

"  By  no  means." 

"Yes  ;  I  insist  upon  it,"  said  Sally  ;  "such  friends 
as  vou  don't  grow  on  every  bush." 

"  But,  Mrs.  Rhinos,  you  arc  worn  out  with  labor 
and  anxiety." 

"  T  tea  ft  •  but  that  is  all  gone  now." 

"Well,"  said  the  explain,  who  perceived  that,  a. 
refusal  would  do  more  harm  than  good,  "  we  will 
goon  board,  and  get  our  dinners;  your  husband, 
who  has  had  quite  enough  fatigue  for  once-,  will 
sleep;  then  we  will  come  to  supper,  take  care  of 


300    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

the  cattle,  and  some  of  us  will  sit  up  with  Mr. 
Rhines ;  you  will  get  a  good  night's  rest,  and  then 
will  be  all  right.  To-morrow  we  will  go  over  and 
get  your  folks.  I  should  not  feel  right  to  leave 
you  alone." 

The  next  morning  the  brig's  boat  went  over,  and 
brought  back  Sam  Hadlock,  his  mother,  and  Sally 
Merrithew.  Captain  Rhines  followed,  in  his  own 
boat,  with  Uncle  Isaac,  and  they  brought  cooked 
victuals  enough  for  a  small  army.  The  news 
spread,  and  by  night  the  house  was  full. 

"  Who  will  take  the  Perseverance,  and  go  to 
Portland  for  the  boys,  if  they  are  well  paid  for  it  ?  " 
asked  Captain  Rhines. 

"  I,"  replied  Joe  Griffin ;  "  but  not  for  pay." 

"And  I,"  said  Henry. 

"  And  I,  too,"  said  Joe  Merrithew. 

In  less  than  an  hour  the  swift  little  craft  was 
cleaving  the  waves,  her  sheets  well  aft,  the  smoke 
pouring  from  the  wooden  chimney  into  the  clew  of 
the  foresail,  and  the  spray  freezing  as  fast  as  it  came 
on  board. 

When  Charlie  came,  he  was  so  shocked  by  the 
emaciated  appearance  of  Ben,  and  the  alteration 
in  Sally,  who  had  grown  pale  and  thin,  that  he 
burst  into  tears. 


FIRST  TROUBLE  AND  FIRST  PRAYER.     801 

"  Charlie,"  said  Sally,  as  they  sat  together,  after 
the  rest  had  retired,  and  Ben  was  asleep,  "do  you 
remember  that  the  first  night  you  came  here,  you 
said  your  mother's  dying  counsel  to  you  was,  when 
trouble  came,  to  pray  to  God,  and  He  would  take 
care  of  you?" 

"  Yes,  mother." 

u  Do  you  ever  pray  now  ?  " 

"  I  say  the  Lord's  prayer ;  and  the  first  time  I 
went  on  to  my  land  after  it  was  mine,  I  thanked 
the  Lord,  or  tried  to  ;  but  I've  been  so  happy  here, 
that  I  have  not  prayed  as  I  did  before.  Don't  you 
think,"  said  he,  fairly  getting  into  her  lap,  "  that 
we  are  more  for  praying  Avhen  we  are  in  a  tight 
pi. ice  ?  " 

"Yes,  Charles;  and  so  the  better  God  uses  us, 
the  worse  we  use  Him.  The  night  you  came  here, 
a  poor  outcast  boy,  like  drift-wood  flung  on  the 
shore,  you  said  you  thought  God  had  forgotten 
you  ;  and  now  that  he  has  given  you  a  mother  in 
me,  and  a  father  in  Ben,  and  a  brother  in  John, 
you  have  forgotten  Him." 

"O,  mother,  I  know  I  am  a  wicked,  ungrateful 
boy." 

"Xo  more  so  than  the  rest  of  us.  Since  you 
left  home,  I  have  suffered  all  but  death  ;  but  I 


302    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDERS    OF    ELM    ISLAND. 

have  also  experienced  a  great  joy.  When  Ben 
was  first  taken  sick,  he  had  a  high  fever;  then 
he  was  out  of  his  head ;  after  that  he  went  into  a 
sog.  Al  last  there  came  a  night,  O,-what  a  night! 
I  could  scarce  get  wood  to  keep  from  freezing ;  the 
sea  roared  as  though  it  would  come  into  the  house  ; 
I  thought  Ben  would  die  before  morning.  As  I 

o  o 

sat  here,  just  where  I  do  now,  something  seemed 
to  say,  '  There's  no  help  for  you  on  this  earth  ;  look 
to  God  ! '  I  did  look  to  God  ;  and  I  made  a  prom 
ise  that  I  mean  to  keep !  I  looked  for  Ben  to  die 
when  the  tide  turned  ;  and  such  horrible  thoughts 
as  passed  through  my  mind,  that  I  could  not  move 
him  from  the  bed,  nor  bury  him;  and  to  be  here 
alone  with  a  corpse  !  but  when  the  day  broke,  I 
saw  he  was  better.  What  swreet  joy  and  love 
sprang  up  in  my  heart !  You  must  pray  to  God 
this  night,  this  moment,  Charlie." 

"I  will  do  anything  you  want  me  to,  mother." 

"  You  must  do  it  because  it  is  right,  not  because 
I  want  you  to." 

"  I  feel  ashamed  to,  when  I  think  how  good  He 
has  been  to  me,  and  how  meanly  I  have  used  Him; 
but  it'  you  will  pray  for  me  light  here,  I  will  pray 
for  myself  when  I  go  to  bed." 

When  Ben  had  regained  in  some  measure  his 
strength,  Sally  told  him  all  her  heart. 


FIRST    TROUBLE    AND    FIRST    PRAYER.  308 

"Thuse  things,"  replied  he,  "are  not  new  to 
me.  In  boyhood,  yes,  even  in  childhood,  they 
Avere  familiar  to  and  grew  up  Avith  me.  There 
are  trees  growing  on  our  point  that  were  bushes 
when  I  prayed  under  them.  After  I  went  to  sea, 
these  impressions  faded  out ;  but  the  death  of  John 
brought  them  back;  and  since  I  have  leit  oil' drink 
ing  spirit,  they  have  increased  in  power.  The  day 
before  I  was  taken  sick,  as  I  lay  on  the  rocks 
watching  for  birds,  and  thinking  of  John,  and  how 
quick  he-  Avent,  the  thought,  Are  you  ready  to  fol- 
lu-j-  /iiut  /  came  in  my  mind  with  such  distinctness, 
thai  I  turned  round  to  sec  who  spoke  to  me.  On 
the  rocks,  right  there,  I  cried  to  God,  which  I  had 
not  done  since  I  was  fifteen.  I  think  I  see  men  as 
trees  Avalking;  and  I  mean  to  follow  after  the  little 
glimmering  of  light  that  I  have." 

Ben  now  improved,  the  great  bones  Avere  again 
clothed  Avith  llesh,  and  the  sinews  regained  their 
tiemendous  poAvcr.  . 

In  a  fortnight  the  boys  returned  to  their  work, 
Charlie  haviii"-  filled  the  shed  with  dry  Avood,  and 

O 

the  door-yard  with  green,  cut,  for  the  fire.  He 
also  leil  a  boy  of  fifteen  to  take  care  of  the  cattle 
till  Ben  recovered  his  strength. 

The  good  impression  produced   by  sickness  upon 


304    THE    YOUNG    SHIP-BUILDEKS    OF    ELM   ISLAND. 

both  Ben  and  Sally  was  not  confined  to  them, 
but  extended  to  Captain  Rhines,  Seth  Warren, 
Joe  Griffin,  John,  and  Fred,  and  was  the  means  of 
bringing  Uncle  Isaac  to  make  a  public  profession 
of  faith,  for  which  he  had  never  before  felt  himself 
qualified.  Captain  Rhines,  after  a  severe  strug 
gle,  gave  up  the  use  of  spirit.  Before  the  boys 
separated,  Fred  told  them  he  had  clone  so  well 
that  summer,  he  meant  to  get  timber  in  the  winter, 
build  a  store  in  the  spring,  and  make  a  T  to  the 
wharf,  that  vessels  might  lie  safely  there  in  any 
weather. 

Reluctantly  these  youthful  friends,  whose  aspira 
tions  and  sympathies  mingled  like  the  interlacing 
of -green  summer  foliage,  parted  each  of  them  to 
their  different  places  of  labor.  The  next  and 
concluding  volume  of  the  series,  THE  HARD- 
SCEABBLE  OF  ELM  ISLAND,  will  inform  our  readers 
how  they  bore  themselves  in  life's  battle,  when 
its  responsibilities  began  to  press  upon  their  young 
shoulders,  cares  and  trials  to  thicken  around  them, 
and  when  called  to  discharge  sterner  tasks,  and 
face  greater  perils  than  they  had  yet  encountered. 


REV.  ELIJAH  KELLOGG'S 

ELM  ISLAND  STORIES. 

Six  vols.    16mo.    Illustrated.    Per  vol.,  $1.25. 

1.  Lion  Ben  of  Elm  Island. 

2.  Charlie  Bell. 

3.  The  Ark  of  Elm  Island. 

4.  The  Boy  Farmers  of  Elm 

Island. 

5.  The  Young  Shipbuilders  of 

Elm  Island. 

6.  The  Hardscrabble  of  Elm 

Island. 

"There  is  no  sentimentalism  in  this  series. 
It  is  all  downright  matter-of-fact  boy  life,  and 
of  course  they  are  deeply  interested  in  read 
ing  it.  The  history  of  pioneer  life  is  so 
attractive  that  one  involuntarily  wishes  to 
renew  those  early  struggles  with  adverse 
circumstances,  and  join  the  busy  actors  in 
their  successful  efforts  to  build  up  pleasant 
homes  on  our  sea-girt  islands." — Zion's 
Herald. 

LEE  &  SHEPARD,  Publishers,  Boston. 


Wonderful  Stories. 

JUTLAND  SERIES. 

Four  vols.    Illustrated.    Set  in  a  neat  box,  or  sold 
separate.    Per  vol.,  $1.50. 

The  Sand  Hills  of  Jutland. 

By  Hans   Christian  Andersen.      i6mo. 
Illustrated. 

Yarns  of  an  Old  Mariner. 

By  Mrs.   Mary  Cowden  Clarke.     Illus 
trated  by  Cruikshank.   i6mo. 

Schoolboy  Days. 

By  W.  H.  G.   Kingston.      i6mo.      Six 
teen  illustrations. 

Great  Men  and  Gallant  Deeds. 
By  J.  G.  Edgar.     i6mo.     Illustrated. 

Four  books  by  four  noted  authors  comprise 
this  series,  which  contains  Adventures  by  Sea 
and  Land,  Manly  Sports  of  England,  Boy 
Life  in  English  Schools,  Fairy  Tales  and 
Legends,  — all  handsomely  illustrated. 

LEE  &  SHEPARD,  Publishers,  Boston. 


Illustrated  Natural  History. 

YOUNG  HUNTER'S  LIBRARY. 

By  MB8.  K.  LEE.     Four  volumes.     Illustrated. 
Per  vol.,  $1.50. 

The  Australian  "Wanderers. 

The  Adventures  of  Captain  Spencer  and 
his  Horse  and  Dog  in  the  Wilds  of  Aus 
tralia. 

The  African  Crusoes. 

The  Adventures  of  Carlos  and  Antonio 
in  the  Wilds  of  Africa. 

Anecdotes  of  Animals, 

With  their  Habits,  Instincts,  &c.,  &c. 

Anecdotes  of  Birds,  Fishes,  Rep 
tiles,  &c.,  their  Habits  and  Instincts. 

This  is  a  very  popular  series,  prepared  for 
the  purpose  of  interesting  the  young  in  the 
study  of  natural  history.  The  exciting  ad 
ventures  of  celebrated  travellers,  anecdotes 
of  sagacity  in  birds,  beasts,  &c  ,  have  been 
interwoven  in  a  pleasant  manner.  This  se 
ries  is  not  only  very  interesting  but  is  deci 
dedly  profitable  reading. 

LEE  &  SHEPARD,  Publishers,  Boston. 


The   Great    West. 

THE  FRONTIER  SERIES 

Four  vols.    Illustrated.    Per  vol.,  $1.25. 

Twelve   Nights   in  the   Hunters' 
Camp. 

A  Thousand  Miles'  "Walk  Across 
South  America. 

The  Cabin  on  the  Prairie. 
Planting  the  Wilderness. 

The  romance  surrounding  the  adventurous 
lives  of  Western  pioneers  and  immigrants 
has  suggested  nearly  as  many  stories  as  the 
chivalric  deeds  of  knight-errantry.  These 
tales  of  frontier  life  are,  however,  as  a  rule, 
characterized  by  such  wildness  of  fancy  and 
such  extravagancy  of  language  that  we  have 
often  wondered  why  another  Cervantes  did 
not  ridicule  our  border  romances  by  describ 
ing  a  second  Don  Quixote's  adventures  on 
the  prairies.  We  are  pleased  to  notice,  that 
in  the  new  series  of  Frontier  Tales,  by  Lee 
&  Shepard.  there  is  an  agreeable  absence  of 
sensational  writing,  of  that  maudlin  senti 
mentality  which  make  the  generality  of  such 
tales  nauseous."  —  Standard. 


LEE  &  SHEPARD,  Publishers,  Boston. 


- 


MISS    LOUISE    M.    1 

PHARLFY  RflRFR 

^ Q>g™"J'"«»lll»l/l//I/|/ 

To  be  completed  in  six  vols.     iiiiiau,.^...  UUi?   959 

Per  volume,  $i. 

Ho\v  Charley  Koberts   I3e- 


ERIES. 

r  volume,  $ 


came    a   Man. 

How  Eva  lioberts   Grained 
Her   3-Gducation. 

Charley    and    Eva's    Home 
in    the    "VVessl. 

(Of/iCi's  in  Preparation.) 


lized  by  those  who  have  at  heart  the  good  of  tin 


Eva 


-' 


hood    and 


id  they  are  well  adapted  to   stimulate 
ambition  in  the  hearts  of  young  persons. 


1 
nanhood, 


LEE  &  SHEPARD,   Publishers,  Boston. 


"TancC  anO  attvacttbr." 

VACATION  STORY-BOOKS. 

Six  vols.      lllust.      Per  vol.,  80  cts. 

Worth  not  'Wealth. 

Country  Life. 

The  Charm. 

Karl  Keifjler. 

"Walter  Seyton. 

Holidays  at  Chestnut  Hill. 


ROSY  DIAMOND  STORY-BOOKS. 

Six  volumes.      Illustr.it. -d.      Per  vol.,  So  cts. 

The  Great  Rosy  Diamond. 
Daisy,  or  The  Fairy  Spectacles. 
Violet,  a  Fairy  Story. 
Minnie,  or  The  Little  Woman. 
The  Angel  Children. 
Little  Blossom's  Reward. 

Those  are  delightful  works  for  ehililrni.  They 
are  all  very  popular,  find  have  had  »  wide  circula 
tion.  They  are  now  presented  in  a  new  dress. 
The  «t.-rics  nre  nil  nnni»in«  and  instructive,  ex 
hibiting  human  nature  in  children,  and  teaching 

some  very  important  practical  lessons. 

LEE  &,  SHEPARD,   Publishers,  Boston 


Jiilly 


the    Itope. 
mess's    Jt'civorite. 


The   Cruise   of   the   Dasha- 
•vi/ay. 

The    Little    Spaniard. 
Salt   ^Vater   Diolc. 
Little    INIaid    of  Oxbow. 

"  'May  Maunerinp;'  is  the  nom  de  plumt  of  an 
agreeable  writer  for  the  young  folks  who  possesses 
more  than  oidinary  ability,  and  has  a  thorough 
comprehension  of  the  way  to  interest  children."  - 
/'/,</«,/,///,/»«  Item. 

"  We  like  the  spirit  of  these  books  exceedingly. 


and  cordially 
School  J.ibrar 


iiend  it  to  the  notice  of  Sabbath 
-  I.atlifi  Repository. 


LEE  &.  SHEPARD,  Publishes,  Boston. 
"  JTascinatina  null  Enatructiuc." 

THE   PROVERB   SERIES. 

BY  MRS.    M.   K.    BKADI.EY  AND  Miss 
KATE  J.   NEKI.Y. 

Six  vols.      lllust.      Per  vol.,  Ji. 

Birds  of  a  Feather. 

Fine  Feathers  do  Not  make  Fine 
Birds. 

Handsome  is  that  Handsome  does. 

A  Wrong   Confessed    is    half  He 
dressed. 

Actions  speak  louder  than  Words 
One  Good  Turn  deserves  another. 

"Kach  volume  is  complete  in  il«elt.  and  llhi»- 
triite«.  with  a  nlory  of  in.ist  liiM-mniing  nnd  in 
,tructive  interect,  the  prove  rb  taki'ii  tor  it.  lille. 

lii'-e  are  just  the   kind   of  I k.  Unit  «,•   III.,    to 

see  in  a  Imnil.vor  S.induy-i'cliool  libnnv  I  !:.  v 
will  he  rend  iiy  PCIM.HS  of  all  up '  *<<•<  '!"  I' 
intcn-t.  and  flttord  instructive  und  ,-nt.  itainini! 
conversation  witfc  the  childmi."  ••>'  >'  ./..r,,-nu/. 

LEE  &,  SHEPARD.  Publishers,  H.-sum. 

•  .  .  • 


